Led by the Hand of God

[Studies Aired December 2, 2025]

Introduction

Throughout Scripture, we encounter a truth that challenges modern notions of independence: mankind is entirely God’s creation, designed to be completely subject to His desires and purposes. Yet this complete subjection is not that of lifeless puppets mechanically moved by external strings, but rather of beloved children being led by the tender hand of a loving Father. We are His workmanship, fashioned by His hand from beginning to end, every step ordered by His sovereign will.

The Apostle Paul declares this foundational reality: “In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will” (Ephesians 1:11). This declaration establishes that everything—from cosmic movements to personal choices—operates under God’s sovereign direction. As Daniel proclaimed, “And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?” (Daniel 4:35).

Understanding this complete sovereignty transforms how we view our relationship with God. We are not autonomous beings who occasionally receive assistance, but rather children held by the hand of our heavenly Father. The psalmist captured this intimate guidance: “The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD: and he delighteth in his way” (Psalm 37:23). Every footfall, every decision, every moment unfolds under His watchful care.

Created Subject to God’s Purpose

The Foundation of Creation

From the very beginning, Scripture reveals that mankind was created with a specific design and purpose. The prophet Isaiah records God’s own testimony: “But now, O LORD, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand” (Isaiah 64:8). This imagery establishes the fundamental relationship between Creator and creation—we are entirely shaped by His hand according to His purposes. The Hebrew word for “work” (ma’aseh, H4639) denotes both the act of making and the thing made—we are both God’s creative process and His finished masterpiece.

Paul expands on this truth in Romans 8:20: “For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope.” Mankind was not created in a state of perfection that was later lost, but rather was fashioned from the beginning to undergo a divinely ordained process of transformation. We were made subject to vanity—to the limitations of natural, earthly existence—by God’s deliberate design, not by accident or rebellion. The Greek word for “vanity” (mataiotēs, G3153) speaks of emptiness and purposelessness, yet this was a temporary state imposed for redemptive purposes.

This intentional subjection serves God’s redemptive purpose. David confessed, “Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me” (Psalm 51:5). This is not an indictment of David’s parents, but rather a recognition that all humanity is formed from corruptible flesh, created “of the earth, earthy” as Paul describes in 1 Corinthians 15:47. We were fashioned this way by divine intent, for His redemptive purposes.

God’s Total Sovereignty

The extent of God’s sovereignty over creation cannot be overstated. Through Isaiah, God Himself declares: “I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things” (Isaiah 45:7). This sweeping declaration demolishes any notion that some aspects of existence operate independently of God’s will. Both light and darkness, peace and adversity—all proceed from His sovereign hand.

This absolute authority extends to every detail of existence. Solomon wrote, “The preparations of the heart in man, and the answer of the tongue, is from the LORD” (Proverbs 16:1). Even our thoughts and words find their source in God’s working. Again he states, “A man’s heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps” (Proverbs 16:9).

The prophet Jeremiah provides another powerful image of God’s complete control: “And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it” (Jeremiah 18:4). The potter deliberately creates vessels according to His purposes—some for honor, some for dishonor—all serving His ultimate design. As God continues through Jeremiah, “Behold, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are ye in mine hand, O house of Israel” (Jeremiah 18:6).

Paul develops this potter imagery in Romans 9:20-21: “Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus? Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour?” The clay has no legitimate objection to the potter’s purposes.

The Purpose of Subjection

This universal subjection to God’s will serves a specific purpose—transformation from the natural to the spiritual. Paul explains, “Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual” (1 Corinthians 15:46). God deliberately created humanity in a natural, corruptible state as the first stage of His redemptive plan.

This process culminates in conformity to Christ’s image. Paul declares, “For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren” (Romans 8:29). Everything about our creation and subsequent transformation aims at this singular goal—that we might bear the image of Christ. The subjection to vanity was never the end, but rather the means to this glorious purpose.

The natural creation itself groans under this design, awaiting its fulfillment. Paul continues in Romans 8:21-22: “Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.” All creation anticipates the revelation of the sons of God.

Not Puppets, But Children

The Nature of Divine Leading

While God’s sovereignty is absolute, Scripture consistently presents our relationship with Him not as mechanical manipulation but as intimate paternal guidance. We are not puppets on strings, but children being led by a loving Father’s hand. This distinction is crucial for understanding how total sovereignty coexists with genuine relationship.

The imagery of being led by the hand appears repeatedly in Scripture. Isaiah writes, “For I the LORD thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee” (Isaiah 41:13). This is not the image of a puppet master pulling strings, but of a father steadying a child’s first steps. The psalmist Asaph declares, “Nevertheless I am continually with thee: thou hast holden me by my right hand. Thou shalt guide me with thy counsel, and afterward receive me to glory” (Psalm 73:23-24).

This leading involves genuine guidance rather than coercion. God does not force us as external objects but forms us as living beings. Paul explains God’s method: “It is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure” (Philippians 2:13). The Greek word for “worketh” (energeō, G1754) means to be operative, to energize—God works within us, shaping our desires and actions from the inside. This is not violation of our personhood but rather the very formation of it according to His design.

Paul proclaimed this truth to the Athenians: “For in him we live, and move, and have our being” (Acts 17:28). Our very existence—every breath, every movement, every thought—occurs within God. We are not separate entities He manipulates from outside, but beings whose life is sustained within His life.

Jeremiah captures this internal working beautifully: “Turn thou me, and I shall be turned; for thou art the LORD my God” (Jeremiah 31:18). The prophet recognizes that even his turning to God must come from God’s own turning work within him.

Led by the Spirit

For those in Christ, this leading becomes even more intimate through the indwelling Holy Spirit. Paul declares, “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God” (Romans 8:14). Being led by God’s Spirit is the very mark of sonship. This is not external compulsion but internal guidance, the Spirit working within our spirits to align us with God’s purposes.

Jesus described this Spirit-leading as essential for true worship: “But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth” (John 4:23-24). The Spirit guides us into the truth, conforming our minds and hearts to God’s reality.

This leading by the Spirit involves communication and fellowship. Isaiah promises, “And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left” (Isaiah 30:21). The psalmist adds, “I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye” (Psalm 32:8).

The Intimacy of Fatherhood

This relationship transcends mere control to embody the intimacy of fatherhood. Paul declares, “For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father” (Romans 8:15). We are not slaves responding to a master’s commands from a distance, but children in intimate fellowship with our Father.

Jesus Himself modeled this relationship. He repeatedly referred to His Father’s will guiding His actions: “For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me” (John 6:38). Yet this submission to the Father’s will was not servile obedience but the natural outworking of intimate fellowship. Jesus declares, “I and my Father are one” (John 10:30).

Even Christ, the eternal Son, was led by the hand of the Father throughout His earthly ministry. He testified, “The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise” (John 5:19). The Father guided every step, and the Son followed in perfect communion. This pattern becomes ours through union with Christ. John declares, “Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world” (1 John 4:17). As Christ was led by the Father, so we are led—not as external compulsion but as beloved children walking in intimate fellowship. What was true of Him becomes true of us.

This father-child relationship involves discipline, but even discipline flows from love. Hebrews 12:6 explains, “For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.” The writer continues, “Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live?” (Hebrews 12:9).

Workmanship of His Hands

Created for Good Works

Paul’s declaration in Ephesians 2:8-10 provides a comprehensive picture of how divine sovereignty and human identity harmonize: “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.”

Even our faith is not of ourselves but is God’s gift. This eliminates any grounds for human boasting. Yet this complete dependence establishes us as God’s workmanship. The Greek word translated “workmanship” (poiēma, G4161) gives us our English word “poem”—we are God’s artistic masterpieces, His poems created with purpose and beauty.

The good works we perform were foreordained—predetermined—by God. He prepared these works in advance and created us specifically to walk in them. Isaiah confirms, “This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD” (Isaiah 54:17). Even our righteousness originates from Him.

Every Step Ordered

The comprehensive nature of God’s ordering of our lives is beautifully expressed in Psalm 37:23: “The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD: and he delighteth in his way.” The Hebrew word for “ordered” (kuwn, H3559) means established, confirmed, or prepared. God establishes every step before we take it.

This heavenly orchestration extends to both great and small matters. Proverbs 20:24 states, “Man’s goings are of the LORD; how can a man then understand his own way?” Even the lot—the ultimate symbol of chance—operates under God’s direction. Solomon writes, “The lot is cast into the lap; but the whole disposing thereof is of the LORD” (Proverbs 16:33). What appears random operates according to sovereign design.

James reinforces this truth: “Go to now, ye that say, To day or to morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain: Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that” (James 4:13-15). Our very existence from moment to moment depends on God’s will.

The Potter’s Purpose

The potter-clay relationship provides one of Scripture’s most powerful images for understanding God’s complete sovereignty over His creation. This imagery appears repeatedly because it perfectly captures the nature of His absolute authority.

Jeremiah received this revelation: “O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as this potter? saith the LORD. Behold, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are ye in mine hand, O house of Israel” (Jeremiah 18:6). The clay possesses no independent agency. The potter forms it entirely according to his own purposes and design.

God’s will is irresistible not because it violates personhood but because it creates and sustains personhood. We cannot resist His will because our very existence and every faculty we possess originates from Him and depends upon Him. Yet this does not reduce us to lifeless objects. Clay in the potter’s hands becomes vessels with purpose and function. Similarly, God shapes us according to His purposes, forming us into vessels fit for His service.

From Beginning to End

Predestined According to His Purpose

Scripture repeatedly emphasizes that God’s work with us begins long before we are aware of Him. Paul declares, “Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will” (Ephesians 1:5). Our adoption as children was predestined—determined beforehand—according to God’s pleasure.

Romans 8:28-30 provides one of Scripture’s clearest statements of this truth, revealing an unbroken chain: foreknowledge leads to predestination, which leads to calling, which leads to justification, which leads to glorification. No link depends on human decision. God foreknows, predestinates, calls, justifies, and glorifies. From start to finish, salvation is entirely His work.

The purpose of this predestination is conformity to Christ’s image. Peter writes, “Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you” (1 Peter 1:20). Christ Himself was foreordained, and we were chosen in Him before creation began. Paul adds, “According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love” (Ephesians 1:4).

David marveled at this predetermined design: “Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there was none of them” (Psalm 139:16). Before we drew first breath, God had written our complete story.

Called According to His Will

The calling that brings us into relationship with God originates entirely from His sovereign will. Jesus stated plainly, “Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain” (John 15:16). We did not choose Him; He chose us.

This calling operates through specific supernatural action. Jesus explained, “No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw (drag) him: and I will raise him up at the last day” (John 6:44). The Greek word for “draw” (helkuō, G1670) means to drag or pull, indicating active, irresistible drawing.

Paul experienced this drawing dramatically on the Damascus road. He was actively persecuting Christians when Christ confronted him. Christ’s words are revealing: “Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? … it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks” (Acts 9:4-5). “Kicking against the pricks” refers to an ox resisting the goad that drives it. Saul had been resisting God’s prompting by design, but God’s purpose prevailed.

This calling extends to all who will ultimately be saved. Jesus declares, “And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw (G1670 drag) all men unto me” (John 12:32). Paul confirms this universal scope: “For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive” (1 Corinthians 15:22). The “all” who die in Adam corresponds exactly to the “all” who will be made alive in Christ.

Guided Through Every Stage

God’s leading does not end with our calling but continues through every stage of our spiritual journey. David testified, “He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake” (Psalm 23:3). God Himself leads us in the paths we should walk, and He does so for His own name’s sake—for His glory and intent.

This continual guidance involves both direction and correction. Proverbs 3:5-6 counsels, “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” Acknowledging God in all our ways positions us to receive His direction.

Sometimes this guidance comes through difficult circumstances. Job testified after his trials, “But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold” (Job 23:10). God knows our path even when we cannot see ahead. The psalmist adds, “The LORD will perfect that which concerneth me: thy mercy, O LORD, endureth for ever: forsake not the works of thine own hands” (Psalm 138:8).

This perfecting work continues until completion. Paul assures us, “Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:6). The same God who began the work will complete it.

The Certainty of His Purpose

Because everything depends on God’s sovereign will rather than human decision, the outcome is absolutely certain. Paul declares, “For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38-39).

Nothing can separate us from God’s love because that love does not depend on our maintaining it. We are kept by His power. Peter writes, “Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time” (1 Peter 1:5).

God’s purpose cannot fail because it depends entirely on His will. Isaiah records God’s declaration: “Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure” (Isaiah 46:9-10). God declares the end from the beginning because He has determined both.

Lamentations confirms this absolute sovereignty: “Who is he that saith, and it cometh to pass, when the Lord commandeth it not? Out of the mouth of the most High proceedeth not evil and good?” (Lamentations 3:37-38). Nothing happens that God has not ordained.

This certainty extends to the ultimate redemption of all creation. Paul reveals, “That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him” (Ephesians 1:10). God’s purpose is to sum up all things in Christ.

The universe itself awaits this completion. Paul explains, “For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God … Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God” (Romans 8:19, 21). All creation will be delivered because God subjected it to vanity with this very deliverance in view.

Conclusion

We stand before a profound mystery that Scripture presents without apology: mankind is entirely God’s creation, completely subject to His will in every respect, yet we are beloved children guided by His loving hand, not puppets manipulated by external strings. The universe itself operates entirely under His sovereign control, every atom moving according to His purposes.

This is not the picture of a distant deity who wound up creation like a clock and stepped back to watch it run. Rather, Scripture presents an intimately involved Father who works all things according to the counsel of His own will, who guides His children every step of the way, who shapes us as the potter shapes clay in his hands. From the moment of our creation through every stage of our transformation until our final glorification, God directs, sustains, and perfects us.

This complete sovereignty does not diminish us but rather establishes our true dignity and security. We are not autonomous beings struggling to find meaning in a random universe. We are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works which He prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. Our steps are ordered by the Lord. Our lives unfold according to His design.

Understanding this truth transforms how we live. We no longer bear the impossible burden of creating our own meaning or securing our own future. We rest in the hands of the Potter who forms us according to His purposes. We trust in the Father who holds our right hand and says, “Fear not; I will help thee.” We walk the path knowing that He who began a good work in us will complete it.

The psalmist captured this rest beautifully: “The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters” (Psalm 23:1-2). This is the life of those who understand God’s sovereignty—not anxious striving but peaceful following, not independence but intimate communion with the One who leads us by the hand.

Paul’s great doxology in Romans 11:36 provides the fitting conclusion: “For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen.” All things originate from God, proceed through God, and culminate in God. We exist from Him, through Him, and for Him. This is not constraint but liberation—the freedom of living in harmony with our created design, walking in the purposes for which we were made, guided every step by the hand of our loving Father.

May we rest in this glorious truth: we are God’s creation, subject to His will, yet cherished children led by His hand from beginning to end. In this complete dependence we find our true identity, our ultimate security, and our deepest joy. For His glory. Amen.

God’s Foreknowledge

[Study Aired September 3, 2024]

Introduction

1 Peter 1:2 “Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.

The concept of God’s foreknowledge, as introduced in this verse, presents us with a profound and awe-inspiring aspect of the nature of God. It speaks to God’s omniscience – His all-knowing character – particularly as it relates to His eternal perspective on time and events. The apostle Peter, in addressing the elect, grounds their very selection in this divine foreknowledge, connecting it directly to the process of sanctification and the work of Christ.

Understanding God’s foreknowledge is crucial for grasping the depth of our salvation and the intricacies of God’s relationship with His creation. It challenges our carnal perceptions of time, choice, and divine sovereignty, inviting us into a deeper contemplation of the One who knows the end from the beginning.

As we start this study, we must heed the words of Proverbs 3:5-6:

“Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.”

Our exploration of God’s foreknowledge should lead us not to pride in our own intellect, but to a humble reverence for the infinite God who chose us before the foundation of the world.

Ephesians 1:3-6 “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ: According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.”

As we dig into this study, our understanding of God’s foreknowledge must be built upon the solid foundation of Scripture, ensuring that our faith remains unshaken. As Luke 6:48 reminds us,

“He is like a man which built a house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock: and when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it: for it was founded upon a rock.” (Jesus Christ)

Understanding Foreknowledge

The term “foreknowledge” in 1 Peter 1:2 is translated from the Greek word “prognosis.” This word is composed of two parts: “pro” meaning “before” and “gnosis” meaning “knowledge.” In essence, it refers to knowing something beforehand or having advanced knowledge.

In the New Testament, this term appears only twice:

• Acts 2:23 “Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain”
• 1 Peter 1:2 “Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.”

To understand how this concept is used in Scripture, we must follow the principle found in Isaiah 28:10: “For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little.”

• God’s foreknowledge of events: Isaiah 46:10 “Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure”
• God’s foreknowledge of individuals: Jeremiah 1:5 “Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.”
• God’s foreknowledge in relation to salvation: Romans 8:29 “For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.”

Foreknowledge and Predestination

Let’s look at the distinction between foreknowledge and predestination. It’s important to note that while these concepts are related, they are distinct. Foreknowledge refers to God’s advance knowledge, while predestination refers to His determinate purpose or plan.

To understand this distinction, we must carefully examine the relevant Scriptures, following the principle in 2 Corinthians 13:1, “In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established.”

Foreknowledge: As we’ve discussed, foreknowledge (prognosis) refers to God’s advance knowledge. It’s His ability to know all things before they occur. Key verses:

1 Peter 1:2 “Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father…”

Acts 2:23 “Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God…”

Predestination: This term comes from the Greek “proorizo,” meaning to determine beforehand or foreordain. Key verses:

Romans 8:29-30 “For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son… Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called…”

Ephesians 1:5 “Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will”

The distinction lies in that foreknowledge is an aspect of God’s omniscience – His all-knowing nature. Predestination, on the other hand, relates to His sovereign will and plan.

To understand this better, let’s consider Romans 8:29-30. Here, Paul presents a sequence: foreknowledge precedes predestination. This sequence illustrates that while foreknowledge and predestination are related, they function within different aspects of God’s omniscience and sovereign will.

As Isaiah 46:10 states, “Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure.” This verse emphasizes that God’s foreknowledge and predestination work together to fulfill His sovereign plan.

We should also consider that our understanding of time and causality may not fully grasp God’s eternal perspective. As Psalm 90:4 reminds us, “For a thousand years in thy sight are but as yesterday when it is past, and as a watch in the night.” Also James 4:14 Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.

While foreknowledge and predestination are closely related concepts, they are distinct. Foreknowledge refers to God’s complete knowledge of all things, while predestination refers to His sovereign plan and purpose. Both concepts highlight God’s sovereignty and omniscience, reminding us of His supreme authority over all creation.

God’s Nature and Foreknowledge

To understand God’s foreknowledge, we must consider His nature as revealed in Scripture. Let’s examine this, keeping in mind 2 Timothy 3:16-17:

“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.”

God’s foreknowledge is intimately connected to His omniscience – His all-knowing nature. This attribute is clearly presented in Scripture:

1 John 3:20 “For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things.”

Job 37:16 “Dost thou know the balancings of the clouds, the wondrous works of him which is perfect in knowledge?”

These verses affirm that God’s knowledge is complete and perfect, encompassing all things.

God’s foreknowledge is also linked to His eternal nature. He exists outside of time as we understand it:

Deuteronomy 33:27a “The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms:”

1 Timothy 1:17 “Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen.”

These verses emphasize God’s eternal nature, indicating His existence beyond the constraints of time.

God’s foreknowledge doesn’t exist in isolation but is intimately connected with His sovereignty – His supreme power and authority over all creation.

Daniel 4:35 “And all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing: and he doeth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth: and none can stay his hand, or say unto him, What doest thou?”

Psalm 33:11 “The counsel of the LORD standeth forever, the thoughts of his heart to all generations.”

These passages demonstrate that God’s foreknowledge is not merely passive awareness, but is linked to His active will and purpose across all generations.

As we review these aspects of God’s nature, we must remember the words of Job 11:7-9:

“Canst thou by searching find out God? canst thou find out the Almighty unto perfection? It is as high as heaven; what canst thou do? deeper than hell; what canst thou know? The measure thereof is longer than the earth, and broader than the sea.”

This reminds us that while we strive to understand God’s foreknowledge, we must approach this topic with humility, recognizing that our finite minds cannot fully comprehend the infinite nature of God.

1Co 13:12 “For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.”

God’s foreknowledge is an expression of His omniscient and eternal nature, working in harmony with His sovereign will. As we continue our study, we’ll explore how this understanding of God’s nature and foreknowledge relates to the themes of election and salvation presented in 1 Peter 1:2.

Foreknowledge in the Old Testament

While the specific term “foreknowledge” (prognosis) doesn’t appear in the Old Testament, the concept is clearly present. We’ll examine this through prophecies, God’s plans for His people, and foreshadowing of the Messiah. As Romans 15:4 states, “For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.”

The Old Testament contains numerous prophecies that demonstrate God’s foreknowledge. Let’s examine a few:

• The Fall of Tyre:

Ezekiel 26:3-5 “Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Tyrus, and will cause many nations to come up against thee, as the sea causeth his waves to come up. And they shall destroy the walls of Tyrus, and break down her towers: I will also scrape her dust from her, and make her like the top of a rock. It shall be a place for the spreading of nets in the midst of the sea: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD: and it shall become a spoil to the nations.”

Ezekiel 26:7-12 “For thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will bring upon Tyrus Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, a king of kings, from the north, with horses, and with chariots, and with horsemen, and companies, and much people. He shall slay with the sword thy daughters in the field: and he shall make a fort against thee, and cast a mount against thee, and lift up the buckler against thee. And he shall set engines of war against thy walls, and with his axes he shall break down thy towers. By reason of the abundance of his horses their dust shall cover thee: thy walls shall shake at the noise of the horsemen, and of the wheels, and of the chariots, when he shall enter into thy gates, as men enter into a city wherein is made a breach. With the hoofs of his horses shall he tread down all thy streets: he shall slay thy people by the sword, and thy strong garrisons shall go down to the ground. And they shall make a spoil of thy riches, and make a prey of thy merchandise: and they shall break down thy walls, and destroy thy pleasant houses: and they shall lay thy stones and thy timber and thy dust in the midst of the water.”

Ezekiel 29:18 “Son of man, Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon caused his army to serve a great service against Tyrus: every head was made bald, and every shoulder was peeled: yet had he no wages, nor his army, for Tyrus, for the service that he had served against it.

This prophecy was fulfilled in stages, demonstrating God’s foreknowledge in predicting the destruction of Tyre.

• The Rise and Fall of Kingdoms:

Daniel 2:31-33 “Thou, O king, sawest, and behold a great image. This great image, whose brightness was excellent, stood before thee; and the form thereof was terrible. This image’s head was of fine gold, his breast and his arms of silver, his belly and his thighs of brass, his legs of iron, his feet part of iron and part of clay.”

Daniel 2:38 specifically identifies the “head of gold” as the Babylonian Empire: “Thou art this head of gold.” The interpretation of the other materials as representing successive empires is not explicitly named in the scripture.

Daniel 2:44 provides the climax of this prophecy: “And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.”

This verse foretells the establishment of God’s eternal kingdom, which will supersede all earthly kingdoms.

• God’s Foreknowledge in His Plans for Israel:
The Abrahamic Covenant:

Genesis 15:13-14 “And he said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years; And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge: and afterward shall they come out with great substance.”

This prophecy was fulfilled centuries later in the Exodus from Egypt, demonstrating God’s foreknowledge.

Exodus 12:40-41 (Fulfillment of the 400 Years):

“Now the sojourning of the children of Israel, who dwelt in Egypt, was four hundred and thirty years. And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred and thirty years, even the selfsame day it came to pass, that all the hosts of the LORD went out from the land of Egypt.”

This scripture shows that the Israelites were in Egypt for 430 years, fulfilling the prophecy given to Abram.

Exodus 3:7-8 (God’s Promise to Deliver Israel):

“And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows; And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites.”

This passage confirms God’s plan to fulfill His promise to Abram by delivering Israel from Egypt.

Exodus 12:35-36 (Fulfillment of Leaving with Great Substance):

“And the children of Israel did according to the word of Moses; and they borrowed of the Egyptians jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment: And the LORD gave the people favour in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they lent unto them such things as they required. And they spoiled the Egyptians.”

This scripture shows that the Israelites left Egypt with great wealth, fulfilling the part of the prophecy that they would come out “with great substance.”

These scriptures collectively demonstrate the fulfillment of the prophecy in Genesis 15:13-14, affirming God’s foreknowledge in His plans for Israel.

The Return from Babylonian Exile:
Jeremiah 29:10 “For thus saith the LORD, That after seventy years be accomplished at Babylon I will visit you, and perform my good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place.”

• Prophecies About the Messiah:

His Birthplace: Micah 5:2 “But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.”

His Suffering:
Psalm 22:16-18 “For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have enclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet. I may tell all my bones: they look and stare upon me. They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my vesture.”

These prophecies were fulfilled in Jesus Christ, demonstrating God’s foreknowledge of events far into the future.

As we consider these examples, we see that God’s foreknowledge in the Old Testament is not just about predicting future events, but about His sovereign plan unfolding through history. This aligns with Hebrews 10:1, which states: “For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect.“

Foreknowledge in the New Testament

In the New Testament, we see a deeper revelation of God’s foreknowledge, particularly in relation to Christ’s work and the plan of salvation.

Jesus demonstrated divine foreknowledge in His precise predictions of His own death and resurrection:

Matthew 16:21 “From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day.”

Luke 18:31-33 “Then he took unto him the twelve, and said unto them, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of man shall be accomplished. For he shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on: And they shall scourge him, and put him to death: and the third day he shall rise again.”

The apostles recognized that Christ’s death was according to God’s foreknowledge:

Acts 2:23 “Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain:”

Acts 4:27-28 “For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together, For to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done.”

Paul connects God’s foreknowledge with His plan of salvation:

Romans 8:29-30 “For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.”

Ephesians 1:4-5 “According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,”

These passages show that God’s foreknowledge is intricately linked with His plan for believers, extending from before the foundation of the world to their ultimate glorification.

As we consider these New Testament teachings on foreknowledge, we see a progression from the Old Testament concept. While the Old Testament largely focused on God’s foreknowledge of events and nations, the New Testament reveals His foreknowledge in relation to individual salvation and the work of Christ.

This aligns with the principle stated in John 6:63: “It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.” The New Testament’s spiritual revelation of God’s foreknowledge gives us a deeper understanding of its significance in our salvation.

God’s Absolute Sovereignty and Foreknowledge

In examining God’s foreknowledge, we must recognize His absolute sovereignty over all things. As we explore this topic, let’s keep in mind Romans 9:20-21: “Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus? Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour?”

Scripture affirms God’s complete sovereignty over all events and choices:

Proverbs 16:9 “A man’s heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps.”

Proverbs 21:1 “The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will.”

These verses demonstrate that even human thoughts and decisions are under God’s control.

God’s foreknowledge is not merely passive awareness, but active determination:

Lamentations 3:37-38 “Who is he that saith, and it cometh to pass, when the Lord commandeth it not? Out of the mouth of the most High proceedeth not evil and good?”

Amos 3:6 “Shall a trumpet be blown in the city, and the people not be afraid? shall there be evil in a city, and the LORD hath not done it?”

These passages indicate that nothing occurs outside of God’s direct causation.

God’s absolute sovereignty serves His ultimate purposes:

Ephesians 1:11 “In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:”

Romans 9:17 “For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth.”

These verses show that God’s control over all things, including human actions, serves to fulfill His divine plan.

As we examine these truths, we must remember Isaiah 45:9:

“Woe unto him that striveth with his Maker! Let the potsherd strive with the potsherds of the earth. Shall the clay say to him that fashioneth it, What makest thou? or thy work, He hath no hands?”

Our role is not to question God’s sovereign control, but to trust in His perfect wisdom and justice, even when we cannot fully comprehend His ways.

The Kingdom Within and God’s Foreknowledge

As we go deeper into the concept of God’s foreknowledge, it’s crucial to understand how it relates to the kingdom of God within us. Jesus taught in Luke 17:20-21:

“And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation: Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.”

This internal reality of God’s kingdom aligns with His foreknowledge in several ways:

• God’s foreknowledge ensures the establishment of His kingdom within believers: Ephesians 2:10 “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.”
• The work within us is part of God’s foreknown plan: Philippians 2:13 “For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.”
• Our spiritual growth is encompassed in God’s foreknowledge: 1 Peter 1:2 “Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.”

Understanding that the kingdom of God is within us, guided by His foreknowledge, should lead us to a deeper appreciation of His work in our lives and a greater surrender to His will.

Understanding God’s Foreknowledge Through the Father’s Spirit:

As we seek to grasp the profound concept of God’s foreknowledge, we must rely on the guidance of the Father’s Spirit. Jesus promised in John 14:26: “But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.”
The role of the Father’s Spirit in illuminating God’s foreknowledge includes:

• Revealing spiritual truths: 1 Corinthians 2:10 “But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.”
• Guiding us into all truth: John 16:13 “Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.”
• Helping us understand God’s gifts: 1 Corinthians 2:12 “Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.”
As we study God’s foreknowledge, we must continually seek the guidance of the Father’s Spirit, acknowledging our dependence on His illumination to comprehend these deep spiritual truths.

Practical Implications of God’s Foreknowledge and Sovereignty

As we grow in the truths of God’s foreknowledge and sovereign control, we will apply these to our daily lives as believers. Let’s examine the practical implications, keeping in mind Romans 15:4:

“For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.”

A. Comfort and Assurance for Believers

• Security in God’s plan: Romans 8:28 “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” Knowing that God is in complete control should bring comfort, as every circumstance is part of His perfect plan.
• Confidence in salvation: John 6:37 “All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.” God’s sovereign choice in salvation provides assurance of our eternal security.

B. Humility and Dependence on God

• Recognition of our limitations: Jeremiah 10:23 “O LORD, I know that the way of man is not in himself: it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps.” Understanding God’s sovereignty should foster humility, acknowledging our complete dependence on Him.
• Surrender to God’s will: James 4:15 “For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.” We should approach life with an attitude of submission to God’s sovereign will.

C. Worship and Gratitude

• Awe at God’s wisdom: Romans 11:33-36 “O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out! For who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath been his counsellor? Or who hath first given to him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again? For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory forever. Amen.” God’s foreknowledge and sovereignty should inspire deep worship and adoration.
• Thankfulness in all circumstances: 1 Thessalonians 5:18 “In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” Recognizing God’s control over all events should lead us to gratitude, even in difficult times.

D. Trust in God’s Justice

Romans 9:14-15 “What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? God forbid. For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.”

We must trust in God’s perfect justice and mercy, even when we don’t understand His ways.

E. Peace in the Face of Uncertainty

Philippians 4:6-7 “Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.”
Knowing that God foreknows and controls all things should bring peace, even in uncertain times.

F. Seeking God’s Wisdom

James 1:5 “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.”

As we grapple with the deep truths of God’s foreknowledge, we should continually seek His wisdom, trusting that He will guide our understanding.

Conclusion

Understanding God’s foreknowledge and sovereignty will transform our daily lives. It will lead us to greater trust, deeper worship, and a more profound sense of peace. As we navigate life’s challenges, we can rest in the assurance that our sovereign God is working all things according to His perfect will.

Let us close with the words of Jude 1:24-25:

“Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, To the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen.”

As we conclude this study, remember that our understanding of God’s foreknowledge is a journey guided by the Father himself through Jesus Christ. Continue to seek His wisdom, trust in His sovereign plan, and live in the light of His foreknown purpose for your life.

Psalm 32:8 “I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye.”

John 14:23 “Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.”

Numbers 24:1-25  Balaam’s Eyes Being Opened to See

[Study Aired October 16, 2023]

Num 24:1  And when Balaam saw that it pleased the LORD to bless Israel, he went not, as at other times, to seek for enchantments, but he set his face toward the wilderness. 
Num 24:2  And Balaam lifted up his eyes, and he saw Israel abiding in his tents according to their tribes; and the spirit of God came upon him. 
Num 24:3  And he took up his parable, and said, Balaam the son of Beor hath said, and the man whose eyes are open hath said: 
Num 24:4  He hath said, which heard the words of God, which saw the vision of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open: 
Num 24:5  How goodly are thy tents, O Jacob, and thy tabernacles, O Israel!
Num 24:6  As the valleys are they spread forth, as gardens by the river’s side, as the trees of lign aloes which the LORD hath planted, and as cedar trees beside the waters.
Num 24:7  He shall pour the water out of his buckets, and his seed shall be in many waters, and his king shall be higher than Agag, and his kingdom shall be exalted.
Num 24:8  God brought him forth out of Egypt; he hath as it were the strength of an unicorn: he shall eat up the nations his enemies, and shall break their bones, and pierce them through with his arrows. 
Num 24:9  He couched, he lay down as a lion, and as a great lion: who shall stir him up? Blessed is he that blesseth thee, and cursed is he that curseth thee. 
Num 24:10  And Balak’s anger was kindled against Balaam, and he smote his hands together: and Balak said unto Balaam, I called thee to curse mine enemies, and, behold, thou hast altogether blessed them these three times. 
Num 24:11  Therefore now flee thou to thy place: I thought to promote thee unto great honour; but, lo, the LORD hath kept thee back from honour. 
Num 24:12  And Balaam said unto Balak, Spake I not also to thy messengers which thou sentest unto me, saying, 
Num 24:13  If Balak would give me his house full of silver and gold, I cannot go beyond the commandment of the LORD, to do either good or bad of mine own mind; but what the LORD saith, that will I speak? 
Num 24:14  And now, behold, I go unto my people: come therefore, and I will advertise thee what this people shall do to thy people in the latter days. 
Num 24:15  And he took up his parable, and said, Balaam the son of Beor hath said, and the man whose eyes are open hath said: 
Num 24:16  He hath said, which heard the words of God, and knew the knowledge of the most High, which saw the vision of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open: 
Num 24:17  I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him, but not nigh: there shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel, and shall smite the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children of Sheth. 
Num 24:18  And Edom shall be a possession, Seir also shall be a possession for his enemies; and Israel shall do valiantly. 
Num 24:19  Out of Jacob shall come he that shall have dominion, and shall destroy him that remaineth of the city. 
Num 24:20  And when he looked on Amalek, he took up his parable, and said, Amalek was the first of the nations; but his latter end shall be that he perish for ever. 
Num 24:21  And he looked on the Kenites, and took up his parable, and said, Strong is thy dwellingplace, and thou puttest thy nest in a rock. 
Num 24:22  Nevertheless the Kenite shall be wasted, until Asshur shall carry thee away captive.
Num 24:23  And he took up his parable, and said, Alas, who shall live when God doeth this!
Num 24:24  And ships shall come from the coast of Chittim, and shall afflict Asshur, and shall afflict Eber, and he also shall perish forever. 
Num 24:25  And Balaam rose up, and went and returned to his place: and Balak also went his way.

Introduction

This chapter continues with Balak and Balaam attempting to curse the people of Israel. However, in this chapter, the Lord opened Balaam’s eyes to see things from the Lord’s viewpoint. As a result, Balaam gave us more insight on who the Lord’s elect are and their destiny. He also prophesied concerning our captivity in Babylon and how Babylon shall be destroyed. A good takeaway from this study is the fact that in Christ, nothing can harm us and that what we speak when our eyes are opened is a parable to the people of the world, including our brothers and sisters in Babylon. That is why they cannot understand what we say. In summary, this is what happens to us when our eyes are opened:

Mar 16:17  And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;
Mar 16:18  They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.

Speaking in a new tongue means speaking in a parable that only the elect can understand. Casting out devils also implies doing away with the lies or the false doctrines of the evil one. Taking up serpents and not being hurt by drinking any deadly thing signifies that nothing can harm us if we are in Christ. 

Rom 8:31  What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? 
Rom 8:32  He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?

The LORD Opened Balaam’s Eyes to See

Num 24:1  And when Balaam saw that it pleased the LORD to bless Israel, he went not, as at other times, to seek for enchantments, but he set his face toward the wilderness. 

It is when Christ comes to us that our eyes are opened, and our ears begin to hear the words of the Lord. That is when we begin to see who the Lord’s elect are and that they are a blessed people. That was what happened to Balaam. 

Mat 13:16  But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear. 
Mat 13:17  For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.

As we come into the church of the firstborn, that is when we come to see the blessedness of the Lord’s elect.

Heb 12:22  But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels,
Heb 12:23  To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, 
Heb 12:24  And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel.

As a result of Balaam’s eyes being enlightened, he stopped seeking enchantments and set his face toward the wilderness. Seeking for enchantments symbolizes seeking another Jesus. What this means is that when Christ comes to us, and we become part of the church of the firstborn, that is when we stop seeking another Jesus as we focus on the path of life the Lord had apportioned for us. 

Psa 23:3  He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.

2Co 11:4  For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.

Num 24:2  And Balaam lifted up his eyes, and he saw Israel abiding in his tents according to their tribes; and the spirit of God came upon him. 

In verse 2, Balaam lifting up his eyes to see the Israelites abiding in tents signifies that we, His elect, are strangers here on earth. As we are aware, strangers do not become entangled in the affairs of the city where they are dwelling. This implies that as strangers here on earth, we are to focus on what will please our Lord in this life and not become entangled in the affairs of this world. 

Jer 35:7  Neither shall ye build house, nor sow seed, nor plant vineyard, nor have any: but all your days ye shall dwell in tents; that ye may live many days in the land where ye be strangers.

Living in tents also implies that we are looking for the city whose designer and builder is God. In other words, the Lord causes us to seek Him.

Heb 11:8  By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place that he was to receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. 
Heb 11:9  By faith he went to live in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, heirs with him of the same promise. 
Heb 11:10  For he was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God. 

Abiding in tents according to their tribes implies that the Lord has called and chosen His elect from every tribe and tongue.

Rev 5:9  And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;

The Spirit of the Lord coming upon Balaam in verse 2 is another way of saying that Balaam was given eyes to see and ears to hear the word of the Lord just as the Lord’s elect are enlightened to understand the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven.

Mat 13:11  He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. 
Mat 13:12  For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath.

Speaking in Parables

Num 24:3  And he took up his parable, and said, Balaam the son of Beor hath said, and the man whose eyes are open hath said: 
Num 24:4  He hath said, which heard the words of God, which saw the vision of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open: 
Num 24:5  How goodly are thy tents, O Jacob, and thy tabernacles, O Israel! 
Num 24:6  As the valleys are they spread forth, as gardens by the river’s side, as the trees of lign aloes which the LORD hath planted, and as cedar trees beside the waters. 

As indicated, it is when our eyes are opened, as shown in verse 3, that we hear the words of the Lord (verse 4). Seeing the Almighty as our eyes are opened means the Lord is coming to us with the brightness of His coming to open our eyes to see and ears to hear.

2Th 2:7  For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. 
2Th 2:8  And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:

In verse 5, it is when our eyes are opened by the Lord that we come to appreciate the beauty of our dwelling place in tents and also the tabernacle of Israel. As Psalm 90:1 suggests, Christ is our dwelling place. This implies that we come to see that we are in Him as He is in us. The beauty of our tent is therefore Christ. 

Psa 90:1  A Prayer of Moses the man of God. Lord, thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations.

The tabernacle of Israel refers to Christ coming to dwell in us.

Rev 21:3  And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.

In verse 6, the elect is described as valleys which have spread forth. According to Strong’s Dictionary, the valleys are actually streams. It is therefore insightful to describe the elect as streams that spread forth. As we are aware, streams or water stands for the word of the Lord. This implies that the elect being described as streams spreading forth means we live according to the word of the Lord which is alive and active in our lives just as the Lord Jesus represents the word of the Lord.  

Heb 4:12  For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. 

The elect is also described as gardens by the river’s side. This means that what nourishes us is the word of the Lord. Again in verse 6, we, His elect are described as cedar trees beside the waters.  These descriptions of the elect being a garden by the river’s side and as cedar trees beside the waters means that if we live by the word of the Lord, we shall surely prosper in all that we do.  

Psa 1:1  Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers;
Psa 1:2  but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. 
Psa 1:3  He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers. 

In verse 5, we are also described as trees of aloes which the Lord has planted. This implies that we do not contribute anything to our salvation. Everything is the work of the Lord from the very beginning up to the finish line. 

Php 1:6  Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:

As stated in John 6:29, the work of God causes us to believe in Christ. 

Joh 6:28  Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? 
Joh 6:29  Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.

Num 24:7  He shall pour the water out of his buckets, and his seed shall be in many waters, and his king shall be higher than Agag, and his kingdom shall be exalted.

It is instructive to note that Israel in these verses is referred to as “He.” This is because, in this case, Israel is seen from the perspective of Jacob and not as a woman betrothed to Christ. 

Num 24:5  How goodly are thy tents, O Jacob, and thy tabernacles, O Israel!

What this means is that we are looking at the elect from the perspective of a man with dominion or authority who submits to Christ. This verse therefore emphasizes the role of the elect in prophesying or speaking the word of the Lord without having our heads covered. 

1Co 11:3  But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God.
1Co 11:4  Every man praying or prophesying, having his head covered, dishonoureth his head. 
1Co 11:5  But every woman that prayeth or prophesieth with her head uncovered dishonoureth her head: for that is even all one as if she were shaven.

In verse 7, we are told that the Lord’s elect shall pour the water out of his buckets. This signifies that we shall prophesy or speak the word of the Lord from what the Lord has given to each one of us. In other words, every joint shall supply the word of the Lord. 

Mat 12:35  A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things.

Eph 4:16  From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.

His seed shall be in many waters signifies that the Lord has called and chosen His elect from the nations of the world. As we are aware, the many waters mean the nations of the world as shown in the following verse:

Rev 17:1  And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:

The king shall be higher than Agag, and his kingdom shall be exalted means that our Lord Jesus as king shall reign through the ages to come, unlike our earthly kings like Agag whose reign was very temporal or short. It also means that as king, Christ is superior and more powerful to all earthly kings as all power is given unto him. He shall establish his kingdom over the whole world in the fullness of time when the kingdoms of this world become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ. 

Heb 1:8  But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom.
Heb 1:9  Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.
Heb 1:10  And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands:
Heb 1:11  They shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment;
Heb 1:12  And as a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be changed: but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail.

Rev 11:15  And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.

Num 24:8  God brought him forth out of Egypt; he hath as it were the strength of an unicorn: he shall eat up the nations his enemies, and shall break their bones, and pierce them through with his arrows. 
Num 24:9  He couched, he lay down as a lion, and as a great lion: who shall stir him up? Blessed is he that blesseth thee, and cursed is he that curseth thee.

The Lord brought us out of the world (Egypt) to serve Him with a mighty hand which is described as the strength of a unicorn. A unicorn is a wild bull with great strength. 

Exo 32:11  And Moses besought the LORD his God, and said, LORD, why doth thy wrath wax hot against thy people, which thou hast brought forth out of the land of Egypt with great power, and with a mighty hand?

Deu 5:15  And remember that thou wast a servant in the land of Egypt, and that the LORD thy God brought thee out thence through a mighty hand and by a stretched out arm: therefore the LORD thy God commanded thee to keep the sabbath day.

The Israelites eating up the nations, breaking their bones and piercing them through with arrows, signifies that as His elect, we shall overcome the old man or our flesh, represented by nations. This will be done through the word of the Lord which is symbolized by arrows. In verse 9, the elect is signified by a great lion who is ready to eat its prey which is our old man or the flesh.

Num 23:24  Behold, the people shall rise up as a great lion, and lift up himself as a young lion: he shall not lie down until he eat of the prey, and drink the blood of the slain.

Those who bless us shall be blessed, and those who curse us shall be cursed. The Lord also told Abraham the same thing. What this means is that those who fight against us shall find themselves fighting against the Lord. 

Gen 12:3  And I will bless them that bless thee (Abraham), and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.

Num 24:10  And Balak’s anger was kindled against Balaam, and he smote his hands together: and Balak said unto Balaam, I called thee to curse mine enemies, and, behold, thou hast altogether blessed them these three times.
Num 24:11  Therefore now flee thou to thy place: I thought to promote thee unto great honour; but, lo, the LORD hath kept thee back from honour. 
Num 24:12  And Balaam said unto Balak, Spake I not also to thy messengers which thou sentest unto me, saying, 
Num 24:13  If Balak would give me his house full of silver and gold, I cannot go beyond the commandment of the LORD, to do either good or bad of mine own mind; but what the LORD saith, that will I speak? 

Balak saying that Balaam had blessed the Israelites three times shows us that it is a blessing to be judged as we go through the process of attaining spiritual maturity (the significance of the number three). People of the world think that they have the power to promote people to great honor since they believe in man charting his own destiny through his free will just as Balak thought in verse 12. The fact that he admitted that the Lord had kept Balaam from honor is to let us know that whatever happens here on earth is according to the counsel of God, whether good or evil.   

Eph 1:11  In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will: 

Balaam’s stance that he could not go beyond the Lord’s commandments and that whatever the Lord says is what he would do or speak, affirms the fact that it is the counsel of the Lord which shall stand – not what we want. Balam’s resolve not to accept if Balak offered him his house full of silver and gold is to let us know that in this life, what is important is knowing Christ – not riches.  

Mat 6:19  Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: 
Mat 6:20  But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: 
Mat 6:21  For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

Num 24:14  And now, behold, I go unto my people: come therefore, and I will advertise thee what this people shall do to thy people in the latter days. 
Num 24:15  And he took up his parable, and said, Balaam the son of Beor hath said, and the man whose eyes are open hath said: 
Num 24:16  He hath said, which heard the words of God, and knew the knowledge of the most High, which saw the vision of the Almighty, falling into a trance, but having his eyes open: 

In these verses, we are being reminded that all Balaam was saying about Israel was the result of his eyes being opened by the Lord. It is instructive to note that he mentioned that what he was going to say about Israel comes as a parable. As Jesus stated, a parable can only be understood by one whose eyes have been opened by the Lord, which in this case is the Lord’s elect. This means that the physical churches of this world who focus on the letter of the word of God, do not have a clue as to what the word of the Lord is actually saying to His people.

Mat 13:10  And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables? 
Mat 13:11  He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. 
Mat 13:12  For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath.
Mat 13:13  Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. 
Mat 13:14  And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive: 
Mat 13:15  For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them. 
Mat 13:16  But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear. 
Mat 13:17  For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.

In verse 14, Balaam stated that he was going to tell Balak what the people of Israel would do to the people of Moab in the latter days. The people of Moab represent our flesh which the Lord shall destroy through His elect who are the people of the Lord in the latter days. 

Hos 3:5  Afterward shall the children of Israel return, and seek the LORD their God, and David their king; and shall fear the LORD and his goodness in the latter days.

Jer 23:20  The anger of the LORD shall not return, until he have executed, and till he have performed the thoughts of his heart: in the latter days ye shall consider it perfectly.

Num 24:17  I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him, but not nigh: there shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel, and shall smite the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children of Sheth. 
Num 24:18  And Edom shall be a possession, Seir also shall be a possession for his enemies; and Israel shall do valiantly. 
Num 24:19  Out of Jacob shall come he that shall have dominion, and shall destroy him that remaineth of the city. 

Here Balaam is prophesying that he shall see the Lord but not in His lifetime. It is during the lake of fire age that all humanity, including Balaam, shall see the Lord. The star out of Jacob is Christ, who is the morning star. A sceptre is a symbol of rulership. Thus, a sceptre that shall rise out of Israel is speaking of the Lord’s kingship over His elect and His kingdom. 

Gen 49:10 The scepter [of royalty] shall not depart from Judah, Nor the ruler’s staff from between his feet, Until Shiloh [the Messiah, the Peaceful One] comes, And to Him shall be the obedience of the peoples. (AMP)

These verses also assure us that when the Lord, the Star of Jacob, comes to us, He shall destroy our old man or the flesh through the breath of His mouth and the brightness of His coming. The old man or the flesh is signified here by the Moabites, the Edomites and Seir who are being destroyed within His elect by the fire of His word.

2Th 2:7  For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. 
2Th 2:8  And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:

In verse 19, He that has dominion and comes from Jacob is Christ our Lord. It is He who is fighting our battles for us to become overcomers. He shall destroy everything that remains of our old man or the flesh in our city (bodies).

Exo 14:14  The LORD shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace.

Num 24:20  And when he looked on Amalek, he took up his parable, and said, Amalek was the first of the nations; but his latter end shall be that he perish forever. 
Num 24:21  And he looked on the Kenites, and took up his parable, and said, Strong is thy dwellingplace, and thou puttest thy nest in a rock. 
Num 24:22  Nevertheless the Kenite shall be wasted, until Asshur shall carry thee away captive.

Amalek means ‘dweller in a valley.’ The Amalekites are descendants of Esau and therefore are fleshly related to Israel. They represent our flesh which is being subdued by the Lord’s elect.

1Sa 15:2  Thus saith the LORD of hosts, I remember that which Amalek did to Israel, how he laid wait for him in the way, when he came up from Egypt. 
1Sa 15:3  Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass. 

1Sa 15:7  And Saul smote the Amalekites from Havilah until thou comest to Shur, that is over against Egypt. 
1Sa 15:8  And he took Agag the king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword.

The instruction by the Lord to totally destroy the Amalekites is to show us that we cannot leave any aspect of our flesh untouched. The defeat of our old man must be thorough if we are to become overcomers. The Kenites were a nomadic tribe. Hobab, the brother-in-law of Moses, was a Kenite. A significant number of them settled among the Israelites.

Jdg 1:16  And the children of the Kenite, Moses’ father in law, went up out of the city of palm trees with the children of Judah into the wilderness of Judah, which lieth in the south of Arad; and they went and dwelt among the people.

In verse 21, Balaam prophesied that the Kenites’ dwelling place was strong, and they put their nest in a rock. This implies that the Kenites were initially secured as a result of their dwelling among the people of Israel and the fact that they worshiped the Lord who is the rock. However, as time went on, the people of Israel, including the Kenites, forsook the Lord their God. The Kenites therefore also represent Babylon.

In verse 22, Balaam prophesied that the Kenites shall be taken away captive by the Assyrians (Asshur). The going into captivity of the people of Israel included the captivity of the Kenites. It is insightful to note that Heber’s wife Jael, a Kenite, was the one who killed Sisera when their family separated themselves from the Kenites. This means that it is only when we separate from Babylon that we are able to overcome the flesh.

Jdg 4:11  Now Heber the Kenite, which was of the children of Hobab the father in law of Moses, had severed himself from the Kenites, and pitched his tent unto the plain of Zaanaim, which is by Kedesh.

Jdg 4:15  And the LORD discomfited Sisera, and all his chariots, and all his host, with the edge of the sword before Barak; so that Sisera lighted down off his chariot, and fled away on his feet. 

Jdg 4:17  Howbeit Sisera fled away on his feet to the tent of Jael the wife of Heber the Kenite: for there was peace between Jabin the king of Hazor and the house of Heber the Kenite. 
Jdg 4:18  And Jael went out to meet Sisera, and said unto him, Turn in, my lord, turn in to me; fear not. And when he had turned in unto her into the tent, she covered him with a mantle. 
Jdg 4:19  And he said unto her, Give me, I pray thee, a little water to drink; for I am thirsty. And she opened a bottle of milk, and gave him drink, and covered him. 
Jdg 4:20  Again he said unto her, Stand in the door of the tent, and it shall be, when any man doth come and enquire of thee, and say, Is there any man here? that thou shalt say, No. 
Jdg 4:21  Then Jael Heber’s wife took a nail of the tent, and took an hammer in her hand, and went softly unto him, and smote the nail into his temples, and fastened it into the ground: for he was fast asleep and weary. So he died.

Rev 18:4  And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.

Balaam and Balak Finally Separated

Num 24:23  And he took up his parable, and said, Alas, who shall live when God doeth this!
Num 24:24  And ships shall come from the coast of Chittim, and shall afflict Asshur, and shall afflict Eber, and he also shall perish forever.
Num 24:25  And Balaam rose up, and went and returned to his place: and Balak also went his way.

Balaam’s question in verse 23 that who shall live when God does this is to remind us that what he was prophesying will take a long time to occur. 

Hab 2:3  For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry.

In verse 24, Balaam predicted the fall of Babylon which is represented by Asshur (Assyria) and Eber. Abraham is described as a descendant of Eber, and therefore Eber also represents Babylon. This destruction of Babylon is first within us. Later, Babylon shall be destroyed for everyone to see.

Rev 18:7  How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow. 
Rev 18:8  Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her. 
Rev 18:9  And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication and lived deliciously with her, shall bewail her, and lament for her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning, 
Rev 18:10  Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come.

Rev 18:17  For in one hour so great riches is come to nought. And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off, 
Rev 18:18  And cried when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, What city is like unto this great city! 

In verse 25, Balaam and Balak separated from each other. As the Lord’s elect, the Lord will separate us from people who are close to us, who have the potential to influence our walk with Christ negatively. It is sometimes very painful, but it is necessary for our walk with Christ. Abraham’s call by the Lord to go to the land of Canaan was characterized by separating himself from his people and kindred. The nature of the call of Abraham is applicable to us today. It is the same as what happened to Lazarus. When he was raised from the dead, he could not walk because of the grave clothes. As we are aware, clothes or garments represent righteousness. Grave clothes therefore represent our own righteousness (iniquity) which includes some of our relationships which we cherish but are not helping us to grow in Christ. That is when Christ comes in to take them away so we can walk with Him.

Joh 11:43  And when he thus had spoken, he cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth. 
Joh 11:44  And he that was dead came forth, bound hand and foot with graveclothes: and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto them, Loose him, and let him go.

May the Lord continue to show mercy to us as He drags us to Himself. Amen!!

2Ki 19:20-37  Save us out of his hand that all may know that you are God alone – Part 2

[Study Aired March 9, 2023]

2Ki 19:20  Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent to Hezekiah, saying, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, That which thou hast prayed to me against Sennacherib king of Assyria I have heard.
2Ki 19:21  This is the word that the LORD hath spoken concerning him; The virgin the daughter of Zion hath despised thee, and laughed thee to scorn; the daughter of Jerusalem hath shaken her head at thee.
2Ki 19:22  Whom hast thou reproached and blasphemed? and against whom hast thou exalted thy voice, and lifted up thine eyes on high? even against the Holy One of Israel.
2Ki 19:23  By thy messengers thou hast reproached the Lord, and hast said, With the multitude of my chariots I am come up to the height of the mountains, to the sides of Lebanon, and will cut down the tall cedar trees thereof, and the choice fir trees thereof: and I will enter into the lodgings of his borders, and into the forest of his Carmel.
2Ki 19:24  I have digged and drunk strange waters, and with the sole of my feet have I dried up all the rivers of besieged places.
2Ki 19:25  Hast thou not heard long ago how I have done it, and of ancient times that I have formed it? now have I brought it to pass, that thou shouldest be to lay waste fenced cities into ruinous heaps.
2Ki 19:26  Therefore their inhabitants were of small power, they were dismayed and confounded; they were as the grass of the field, and as the green herb, as the grass on the housetops, and as corn blasted before it be grown up.
2Ki 19:27  But I know thy abode, and thy going out, and thy coming in, and thy rage against me.
2Ki 19:28  Because thy rage against me and thy tumult is come up into mine ears, therefore I will put my hook in thy nose, and my bridle in thy lips, and I will turn thee back by the way by which thou camest.
2Ki 19:29  And this shall be a sign unto thee, Ye shall eat this year such things as grow of themselves, and in the second year that which springeth of the same; and in the third year sow ye, and reap, and plant vineyards, and eat the fruits thereof.
2Ki 19:30  And the remnant that is escaped of the house of Judah shall yet again take root downward, and bear fruit upward.
2Ki 19:31  For out of Jerusalem shall go forth a remnant, and they that escape out of mount Zion: the zeal of the LORD of hosts shall do this.
2Ki 19:32  Therefore thus saith the LORD concerning the king of Assyria, He shall not come into this city, nor shoot an arrow there, nor come before it with shield, nor cast a bank against it.
2Ki 19:33  By the way that he came, by the same shall he return, and shall not come into this city, saith the LORD.
2Ki 19:34  For I will defend this city, to save it, for mine own sake, and for my servant David’s sake.
2Ki 19:35  And it came to pass that night, that the angel of the LORD went out, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians an hundred fourscore and five thousand: and when they arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead corpses.
2Ki 19:36  So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed, and went and returned, and dwelt at Nineveh.
2Ki 19:37  And it came to pass, as he was worshipping in the house of Nisroch his god, that Adrammelech and Sharezer his sons smote him with the sword: and they escaped into the land of Armenia. And Esarhaddon his son reigned in his stead.

The last verse we looked at last week was (Ki 19:19) Now therefore, O LORD our God, I beseech thee, save thou us out of his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that thou art the LORD God, even thou only.

In this section of Kings (2Ki 19:20-37) we will learn how God answers this prayer of Hezekiah who typifies the elect who cry out to God day and night wanting to be avenged for the blood of the saints that has been spilt out over the years (Rev 6:10, Hab 2:3, Heb 10:37).

Heb 10:35  Cast not away therefore your confidence (Php 1:6), which hath great recompence of reward.
Heb 10:36  For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.
Heb 10:37  For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry.

Rev 6:10  And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?

Hezekiah’s prayer is symbolic of how we sign and cry for the abominations of this world and are heard because of our fear and reverence toward God (Heb 5:7) that he has caused in us through the fiery trials of this life that make it possible for us to be received of God (Eze 9:4, 1Pe 4:12, Heb 12:6).

2Ki 19:20  Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent to Hezekiah, saying, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, That which thou hast prayed to me against Sennacherib king of Assyria I have heard.
2Ki 19:21  This is the word that the LORD hath spoken concerning him; The virgin the daughter of Zion hath despised thee, and laughed thee to scorn; the daughter of Jerusalem hath shaken her head at thee.

The “LORD God of Israel” hears our prayers and answers them “exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us” (Eph 3:20) when we are brought to that place of being abased as Hezekiah was (Mat 23:12, Jas 4:6, the prayer of untried faith does not receive anything from God Jas 1:5-8).

Eph 3:20  Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,

Mat 23:12  And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.

Jas 1:5  If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.
Jas 1:6  But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering [tried faith 1Pe 1:7]. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed [and he that is not driven by the flesh, less and less is like a sea of glass mingled with fire (Rev 4:6) ].
Jas 1:7  For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord.
Jas 1:8  A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.

Hezekiah is a type of the church being called “The virgin the daughter of Zion” and is the way God sees the bride of Christ now through our Lord (2Co 11:2, Rev 19:7, Rev 3:4)

2Co 11:2  For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.

Rev 3:4  Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white: for they are worthy.

Christ alone is able to “make thine enemies thy footstool” and make us worthy (Mat 22:44) by setting us free from sin (Joh 8:36) as our sins typified by Sennacherib’s are laughed to scorn, “laughed thee to scorn; the daughter of Jerusalem hath shaken her head at thee“. This life long process of becoming stedfastly confident and more than a conqueror through Christ is promised to God’s elect who in time become persuaded of God’s faithfulness and power, something that is achieved through a process of having our faith tried repeatedly through this life (Rom 8:38, Act 14:22).

Rom 8:38  For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,
Rom 8:39  Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Act 14:22  Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.

We shake our heads in dismay at our former conversation in this world (Eph 2:2) as Hezekiah did for ever having tried to make some sort of deal with Sennacherib “the daughter of Jerusalem hath shaken her head at thee“. We thank God for the mercy that he has shown to us as a kind of first fruits who are being given the power to put off that former conversation little and by little as God gives us victory or growth in our heavens through Christ the vine, who God’s first fruits are hoping in and seeking (Rom 11:30-31, Jer 29:13, Mat 6:33).

Rom 11:30  For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief:
Rom 11:31  Even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy.

2Ki 19:22  Whom hast thou reproached and blasphemed? and against whom hast thou exalted thy voice, and lifted up thine eyes on high? even against the Holy One of Israel.

Sennacherib’s reproach and blasphemy against the nation of  Judah was “even against the Holy One of Israel” and God is showing us that same principle that we find in (Act 9:4-5) that tells us that when we do it unto the least of these we do it unto Christ himself whether good or bad (Mat 25:40).

Act 9:4  And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?
Act 9:5  And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks.

Mat 25:40  And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

2Ki 19:23  By thy messengers thou hast reproached the Lord, and hast said, With the multitude of my chariots I am come up to the height of the mountains, to the sides of Lebanon, and will cut down the tall cedar trees thereof, and the choice fir trees thereof: and I will enter into the lodgings of his bordersH7093, and into the forest of his Carmel.
2Ki 19:24  I have dug and drunk strange waters, and with the sole of my feet I will dry up all the rivers of Egypt.

The words “With the multitude of my chariots I am come up to the height of the mountains” of  Sennacherib is symbollic of how sin wants to rule over us because it is at the door of our hearts, but we will rule over it through Christ who is the mountain that we look to for deliverance from our enemies within and without (Gen 4:7, Psa 121:1).

What Satan wants to attack specifically in our lives is symbolized by this sentence “to the sides of (Lebanon – whiteness), and will cut down the tall cedar trees thereof, and the choice fir trees thereof: and I will enter into the lodgings of his borders, and into the forest of his (Carmel – fruitful field)”. Satan’s goal is to always try to defile the temple of God and destroy the fruitful field of our life by corrupting it with lies (Mat 13:27-30). Cutting down “cedar trees” , and “choice fir trees” is referring to men who are as trees (Mar 8:24) that are cut down and sifted by the wicked one to become proselytes, twofold more the child of hell than yourselves (Mat 23:15). Entering into the “lodgings of his borders H7093” is referring to the extremities of the land and symbolizes for us how Satan like a roaring lion tries to cut us off in the area of our land [our bodies] where we are the weakest. We counter these attacks by humbling ourselves under His mighty hand, as we cast all our cares upon him, and look well to the flock to protect it against all such attacks, the strong bearing the weak (1Pe 5:6-9, Heb 13:17 CLV, Rom 15:1).

1Pe 5:6  Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time:
1Pe 5:7  Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.
1Pe 5:8  Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:
1Pe 5:9  Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.

borders H7093 qêts kates  Contracted from H7112; an extremity; adverbially (with prepositional prefix) after: –  + after, (utmost) border, end, [in-] finite, X process.

Isaiah’s recounting of Sennacherib’s boastful claim in his flesh with these words “I have dug and drunk strange waters, and with the sole of my feet I will dry up all the rivers of Egypt” further demonstrating the mind of a man being controlled by the man of perdition on the throne of his heart, whose idols within that perverted heart have been answered by those things which he has accomplished in the earth “I have dug and drunk strange waters, and with the sole of my feet I will dry up all the rivers of Egypt“.

2Ki 19:25  Hast thou not heard long ago how I have done it, and of ancient times that I have formed it? now have I brought it to pass, that thou shouldest be to lay waste fenced cities into ruinous heaps.
2Ki 19:26  Therefore their inhabitants were of small power, they were dismayed and confounded; they were as the grass of the field, and as the green herb, as the grass on the housetops, and as corn blasted before it be grown up.

Sennacherib is God’s sword who was given those victories in his flesh (Psa 17:13), and it is God who has ordained the things that have been determined from the foundation of the world according to the counsel of His will.

Psa 17:13  Arise, O LORD, disappoint him, cast him down: deliver my soul from the wicked, which is thy sword:

2Ki 19:24  I have dug and drunk strange waters, and with the sole of my feet I will dry up all the rivers of Egypt.

Isaiah goes on to declare what God wants Hezekiah to hear in regards to Sennacherib “Hast thou not heard long ago how I have done it, and of ancient times that I have formed it?” in regard to Sennacherib’s boastful claim that “I have digged and drunk strange waters, and with the sole of my feet have I dried up all the rivers of besieged places“. In other words we don’t have free moral agency and God is the one who has formed the light and the darkness, and the peace and the evil (Isa 45:7), and “Therefore their inhabitants were of small power, they were dismayed and confounded; they were as the grass of the field, and as the green herb, as the grass on the housetops, and as corn blasted before it be grown up“. These were the conditions that God created to his glory and reminds us of through the prophet Isaiah’s message to Hezekiah.

Isa 45:7  I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things.

2Ki 19:27  But I know thy abode, and thy going out, and thy coming in, and thy rage against me.

The Lord continues to drive this point home of His sovereignty to the proud and arrogant Sennacherib within “But I know thy abode, and thy going out, and thy coming in, and thy rage against me“. These words spoken about Sennacherib cannot be heeded as he represents our old man of sin that must be destroyed by the brightness of Christ’s coming (2Th 2:8). The verses in (Rev 2:12-13) are words for God’s people today that bare some similarity and also remind us that God is sovereign and knows our works and where our abode is and that we can through the mind of Christ, be granted to read hear and keep the sayings of this prophecy (Rev 1:3). The admonition found in (Rev 2:14) explains what it is that must be burnt out of our heavens and will be as the bride of Christ who God is going to make ready (Rev 19:7).

Rev 2:12  And to the angel of the church in Pergamos write; These things saith he which hath the sharp sword with two edges;
Rev 2:13  I know thy works, and where thou dwellest, even where Satan’s seat is: and thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied my faith, even in those days wherein Antipas was my faithful martyr, who was slain among you, where Satan dwelleth.
Rev 2:14  But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balac to cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication.

Rev 19:7  Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.

2Ki 19:28  Because thy rage against me and thy tumult is come up into mine ears, therefore I will put my hook in thy nose, and my bridle in thy lips, and I will turn thee back by the way by which thou camest.

“The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” (Jer 17:9), however it is known and not hidden from God as revealed with these words “to” Sennacherib, “Because thy rage against me and thy tumult is come up into mine ears“. The way in which God will deal with that first corrupt nature that is within us is typified by what will happen to Sennacherib, described with these words “therefore I will put my hook in thy nose, and my bridle in thy lips, and I will turn thee back by the way by which thou camest“. Sennacherib is going to reap what he sows, and like Satan he will be bound “by the way which thou camest” (Rev 9:2, Rev 9:11, Rev 20:3) until the day of his judgement when his old nature will be destroyed in the lake of fire (Rev_20:10).

Rev 9:2  And he opened the bottomless pit; and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit.

Rev 9:11  And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon.

Rev 20:3  And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.

Sennacherib’s death will come by his own sons, his own household that will prove to be a house divided as Satan is (2Ki 19:37). A hook and a bridle in these very sensitive areas of one’s face reveals that God is in complete control of the beast seen here as Sennacherib who He has caused to err by going up against Hezekiah, and the nation of Judah (Isa 63:17). Going “by the way which thou camest” is reflective of the unchanged pattern in the heart of Sennacherib, unlike the true prophets of God who do not go back the same way, symbolizing the growth and the increase that God gives to his people (1Ki 13:17).

1Ki 13:17  For it was said to me by the word of the LORD, Thou shalt eat no bread nor drink water there, nor turn again to go by the way that thou camest.

2Ki 19:29  And this shall be a sign unto thee, Ye shall eat this year such things as grow of themselves, and in the second year that which springeth of the same; and in the third year sow ye, and reap, and plant vineyards, and eat the fruits thereof.
2Ki 19:30  And the remnant that is escaped of the house of Judah shall yet again take root downward, and bear fruit upward.
2Ki 19:31  For out of Jerusalem shall go forth a remnant, and they that escape out of mount Zion: the zeal of the LORD of hosts shall do this.

These three verses are in contrast with the old man and the new man, the old man that must decrease through a process of judgement described in (2Ki 19:29) along with the new man typified by Judah who must increase (Joh 3:30-31) and “yet again take root downward, and bear fruit upward” in.

Things that we eat that “grow of themselves” represent the way that seems right to us but lead to death (Pro 14:12). That is the time in our life when we don’t understand God’s sovereignty over all things, or know of it but lack the faith to trust in it (Joh 21:18, Mar 9:23-24).

Pro 14:12  There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.

Joh 21:18  Verily, verily, I say unto thee, When thou wast young, thou girdedst thyself, and walkedst whither thou wouldest:[Pro 14:12] but when thou shalt be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldest not. [Rom 15:1]

Mar 9:23  Jesus said unto him, If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.
Mar 9:24  And straightway the father of the child cried out, and said with tears, Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief. [Rom 3:27]

The second year we eat that which “springeth of the same” witnessing to us that because we are accustomed to doing evil we will continue on in our deception without God changing us (Jer 13:23). The third year represents that part of the process of judgement in Sennacherib’s life where the word of God comes to him symbolized by vineyards. God’s judgements are in the earth of Sennacherib “and in the third year sow ye, and reap, and plant vineyards, and eat the fruits thereof” (Isa 26:9) however he will only learn righteousness in the lake of fire, when the “fruits thereof” that he has digested become purified at that time (Joh 12:48, Mat 12:37).

Jer 13:23  Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? then may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do evil.

Mat 12:37  For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.

It is through the process of judgement that is described as “a sign unto thee” to Sennacherib that we can go unto perfection on the third day God permitting, and it is very few who are granted that deliverance in this life from the man of perdition on the throne of our hearts (2Th 2:8) a deliverance typified by this statement “And the remnant (Rom 11:5) that is escaped of the house of Judah shall yet again take root downward, and bear fruit upward“. Sennacherib represents our old man who cannot inherit the kingdom of God and yet his experience of evil (Ecc 1:13) is necessary as is ours in order to bring us unto perfection Lord willing in the first resurrection.

2Th 2:8  And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:

Ecc 1:13  And I gave my heart to seek and search out by wisdom concerning all things that are done under heaven: this sore travail hath God given to the sons of man to be exercised therewith.

Those few, the remnant “that escape” represent the bride of Christ who is made ready by the zeal of the Lord “ For out of Jerusalem shall go forth a remnant, and they that escape out of mount Zion: the zeal of the LORD of hosts shall do this” (Rev 19:7, Joh 2:17).

Rev 19:7  Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him:(“the zeal of the LORD of hosts shall do this“) for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.

Joh 2:17  And his disciples remembered that it was written, The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up.

2Ki 19:32 Therefore thus saith the LORD concerning the king of Assyria, He shall not come into this city, nor shoot an arrow there, nor come before it with shield, nor cast a bank against it.
2Ki 19:33  By the way that he came, by the same shall he return, and shall not come into this city, saith the LORD.
2Ki 19:34  For I will defend this city, to save it, for mine own sake, and for my servant David’s sake.

Two things are being expressed here, one that the gates of hell will not prevail against the body of Christ (Mat 16:18), those gates being represented by the king of Assyria who shoots arrows [false doctrines] that represents all the fiery darts of the devil that the faith of Christ within God’s elect will quench (Eph 6:16). He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world (1Jn 4:4) is what we are being told in symbolic language and “He shall not come into this city” means that sin will no longer dominate God’s elect (Rom 6:14, Tit 2:11-12) who will go unto perfection, learning that no weapon formed against God’s people will prevail because God tells his little flock “I will defend this city, to save it, for mine own sake, and for my servant David’s sake (who typifies Christ)” (Isa 54:17, Luk 12:32). Like the previous mentioned point when someone goes “By the way that he came, by the same shall he return, and shall not come into this city, saith the LORD” it represents that this person was not ordained to go unto perfection in this life, but rather to go back to the same path that leads to death (Heb 6:1-6).

Rom 6:14  For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.

Tit 2:11  For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,
Tit 2:12  Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;

2Ki 19:35  And it came to pass that night, that the angel of the LORD went out, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians an hundred fourscore and five thousand: and when they arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead corpses.

185,000 people smote by the angel of the LORD is a symbollic number that explains how the day of the Lord 1 will bring about the new man 8 by way of grace through faith 5.

It is “early in the morning” that we discover life comes out of death, and that a seed must die in order for life to come forth (Joh 12:24). That life, for those who are granted it today, is the life of Christ which enables us to die daily and be dead to sin and alive in Him (Gal 2:20).

Mat 20:1  For the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which went out early in the morning to hire labourers into his vineyard. [we are hired of Christ and Lord willing labour in the eleventh hour]

Mar 16:2  And very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun.

Luk 21:38 And all the people came early in the morning to him in the temple, for to hear him.

Luk 24:1  Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulchre, bringing the spices which they had prepared, and certain others with them.

Joh 8:2  And early in the morning he came again into the temple, and all the people came unto him; and he sat down, and taught them.

Act 5:21  And when they heard that, they entered into the temple early in the morning, and taught. But the high priest came, and they that were with him, and called the council together, and all the senate of the children of Israel, and sent to the prison to have them brought.

2Ki 19:36  So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed, and went and returned, and dwelt at Nineveh.
2Ki 19:37  And it came to pass, as he was worshipping in the house of Nisroch his god, that AdrammelechH152 and Sharezer his sons smote him with the sword: and they escaped into the land of Armenia. And Esarhaddon his son reigned in his stead.

After this devastating defeat of Sennacherib’s army, you would think there would be some humility and brokenness of spirit in him, but because he represents our man of sin no such contriteness is found, and  “So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed, and went and returned, and dwelt at Nineveh“, continuing in his idolatrous ways of “worshipping in the house of Nisroch his god“. His two sons Adrammelech who was named after an Assyrian idol and Sharezer whose name means “prince of fire” “smote him with the sword” and “they escaped into the land of Armenia. And Esarhaddon his son reigned in his stead“, telling us that sin persists, and that although Satan’s house is divided against itself it continues to flourish regardless of the severity of God’s correction (Rev 16:21). That is the pattern of waxing worse and worse that is unfolding in this present age and God is the one who softens or causes hearts to be hardened which is the overarching lesson of this study that teaches us of His sovereignty over light and darkness and over good and evil (Rom 11:22, Isa 45:7).

Rom 11:22  Behold therefore the goodness and severity of God: on them which fell, severity; but toward thee, goodness, if thou continue in his goodness: otherwise thou also shalt be cut off.

Isa 45:7  I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things.

In the end Hezekiah is delivered from Sennacherib and all of his forces, and all these things happened unto them for our sakes upon whom the end of the ages is come (1Co 10:11), that demonstrate the mercy that God shows to his elect first (Rom 11:31-32) in this life so that all of God’s creation can one day come to know this truth “Now therefore, O LORD our God, I beseech thee,(Heb 5:7) save thou us out of his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that thou art the LORD God, even thou only“(2Ki 19:19).

Rom 11:31  Even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy.
Rom 11:32  For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all.

[by James Ramsay]

Brother Ramsay,

I’m very interested to hear it if you have found, or given a satisfactory explanation from anyone, concerning an answer to the question you asked at the end of your comment referencing the Hebrew word for evil “rah” in the context it’s used in Isaiah 45:7 and how it’s context in Genesis is compared when God spoke to Adam and Eve about not to eat of the Tree of Good and Evil (rah)? I’m searching too for an explanation since I read your spiritually stimulating question. Thank you brother Ramsay for any assistance in helping a fellow Christian brother in discernment of this word and how it
relates in these two scriptures.

Brother Whitson,

Isaiah 45:7 clearly states that God created “good and evil” but ask any Christian what that means and most assuredly they will find a way to exonerate God, who we will all agree is good, from having anything to do with evil. Most people I’ve encountered simply don’t think very deeply about this topic, so the fact that you’re asking about it now is encouraging. My hope is that what you are about to read is a satisfactory explanation to you or, at the very least, prompts you to conduct a deeper study of the subject.

For full disclosure, before you spend any time reading my response, my question was rhetorical; i.e. I had already started to find the answer sometime in 1994 when I was struggling with a number of issues in my life. I think it would be helpful to answer your question by first explaining what was going on at that time which prompted me to start looking into it and why it became so important to me.

1. I was a member of a legalistic church which I had been attending for 18 years that was
experiencing upheaval over doctrinal questions.
2. My youngest son, who was 7 yrs. old, had been diagnosed with OCD, a mental disorder that
was relatively unknown by the general public at the time.
3. I was taking college level courses in psychology, including Abnormal Psychology which, among
other things, dealt with the subject of frontal lobe injuries and their effect on decision making
and self-control.

If you haven’t yet detected the common denominator between all of these issues, let me cut to the chase: all three involved man’s will, something to which, up until that time, I had always assumed was free, meaning that I was free to choose to do and to think whatever I wanted.

While the other situations, especially the church changes, affected me, my son’s disorder was the worst. His condition disturbed me so much that one day I angrily, and undeservedly, rebuked God, demanding an answer to how He could hold my child accountable for behavior over which he had no control. During the next three months, God used my bible study as a rebuke of my understanding of Him and His relationship with mankind. That experience reminds me of how He answered Job, who essentially did the same thing.

Job 40:1  Moreover the LORD answered Job, and said,
Job 40:2  Shall he that contendeth with the Almighty instruct him? he that reproveth God, let him answer it.

Job 40:8  Wilt thou also disannul my judgment? wilt thou condemn me, that thou mayest be righteous? (KJV)

Without any attempt on my part to organize a study on this topic, I was led to scripture after scripture which glorified God’s sovereignty and mankind’s subservience to Him. I had read these many times before, but suddenly they jumped off of the pages as if I had never read them before. Even though I have thought about and studied this topic for the past quarter of a century, I have never put this down on paper, so if you haven’t lost interest so far, I will share some of them below.

I will attempt to do this by answering the following three questions:

1. Why would God create good and evil?
2. Since the same Hebrew word for evil (ra’) is used in both Isaiah 45:7 and Genesis 2:9,17, what does ra’ mean?
3. Why would God create a tree of the knowledge of good and evil, place it in a garden with Adam
and Eve, then tell them not to eat of it?

Ephesians 1:11 introduces a concept of God’s sovereignty that most Christians, while still giving lip service to God’s omnipotence, offhandedly reject; primarily because they simply don’t understand it, and secondarily because their lived experience makes it difficult for them to believe it. To be clear, this is not evidence of Calvinism, but it does vividly describe the relationship between the creator and His creation in terms of whose will was, is and will be accomplished.

Eph 1:11 In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will (NKJV)

Restated [we are] “being predestined (i.e. the will of humanity is not sovereign) according to the purpose of Him [God] who works all things according to the counsel of His will (the will of God is sovereign).” So, what does it mean when man describes God as sovereign?

Since scripture is the written word of God, we must appeal to it to even begin to understand this, and what we find is that God alone is omnipotent, omniscient and omnipresent, meaning He is the only one who has the power and authority to create and destroy and is aware of all that is; i.e. He is not dependent on or influenced by anything other than Himself. The following passages confirm this.

Heb 4:13  And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.

Rom 11:34  “For who has known the mind of the LORD? Or who has become His counselor? (quoted from Isa 40:13 below)

Isa 40:13-14  Who has directed the Spirit of the LORD, Or as His counselor has taught Him? With whom did He take counsel, and who instructed Him, and taught Him in the path of justice? Who taught Him knowledge, and showed Him the way of understanding?

Eph 4:4-6  There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.

Col 1:16-17  For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.

Rom 11:33  Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How
unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out!

Jer 32:17  Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. There is nothing too hard for You.

Psa 103:19  The LORD has established His throne in heaven, and His kingdom rules over all.

Job 21:22  Can anyone teach God knowledge, since He judges those on high?

Job 37:16  Do you know how the clouds are balanced, those wondrous works of Him who is perfect in knowledge?

Isa 46:10  Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done, Saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure,’

Job 28:24  For He looks to the ends of the earth, and sees under the whole heavens,

Pro 15:3  The eyes of the LORD are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good.

Acts 15:18  Known to God from eternity are all His works.

2Ch 16:9  For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him.

Jer 16:17  For My eyes are on all their ways; they are not hidden from My face, nor is their iniquity hidden from My eyes.

Psa 94:9  He who planted the ear, shall He not hear? He who formed the eye, shall He not see?

The average person, Christians included, believe they have a ‘free will’; i.e. they believe, like God, they are sovereign, in this case limited in power, time, space and awareness but capable of making decisions which they believe are independent of any outside force or influence. In the Bible the term ‘free will’ exists only as a description of a type of offering to be given by the Israelites.

Examples of this are found in Leviticus 22:18-23, Numbers 15:3 and Deuteronomy 12:6. The concept that the will of each human is sovereign, in other words, free from outside influences, does not exist in the Bible although thousands of misunderstood scriptures are used by most Christians to support their belief that indeed it does exist. They are taught by those they believe have the authority to speak for God that in spite of the scriptures you’ve just read about God’s sovereignty that each one of us is capable of making choices contrary to our human nature and our physical circumstances outside of the influence of God, who they believe takes a ‘hands off’ approach to the decisions each human makes.

Generally, at this point I have lost people who are busy thinking of all the commandments, the ‘thou shalt(s)’, that are literally found throughout the Bible. The thinking goes something like this; why would God expect His people to keep multiple commandments, laws, ordinances and regulations in the Old and the New Testament if He didn’t expect them to have the ability to choose to do it? That is an important question and one that deserves an answer, so again, please be patient as I wade through this because the answer is remarkable and life-changing.

Let’s start with the story of Job by asking why God induced Satan to tempt Job? That question, in
and of itself, is spiritually challenging because when you ask most Christians what they think
happened in the story of Job they usually answer that Satan caused God to have Job tested. So if you haven’t read the first two chapters of Job in a while, read it again to reacquaint yourself with what actually happened. The context in which this story unfolds reveals a great deal about how God interacts with His creation, which includes the spiritual realm.

Job 1:6 Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came among them. (NKJV)

It is important to recognize that the sons of God, including Satan, presented themselves before the Lord just as a knight of King Arthur’s court would have presented himself before the king. The next time God and Satan interact, the same scene is described in Job 2:1 with an additional fact, ‘Satan came also among them to present himself before the Lord.’ Both verses depict the sons of God and Satan as subordinate to God.

A similar scene is described by the prophet Micaiah in 1 Kings 22:19 and 2 Chronicles 18:18. Since they are almost identical, I will only quote 1 Kings 22:19 here.

1Ki 22:19 Then Micaiah said, “Therefore hear the word of the LORD: I saw the LORD sitting on His throne, and all the host of heaven standing by, on His right hand and on His left.” (NKJV)

The scriptures above as well as several others in both the Old and New Testament depict what appears to be customary gatherings of angelic/spiritual beings around God’s throne as judgments and decisions are being made in a council style setting. What is unique about the four scriptures referenced above is that we get to view how God Himself makes those decisions and commands their implementation by the spirits who answer to Him.

What happens next in the story of Job is important in truly understanding what the book of Job is really about; specifically that man’s righteousness can only be self-righteousness unless God in His sovereign wisdom chooses to make that man righteous. It also elucidates Satan’s role in the created world including his relationship to his and our creator.

Job 1:7 confirms who is in control right from the beginning of the conversation.

Job 1:7 And the LORD said to Satan, “From where do you come?” (NKJV)

Servants do not address their masters like that and considering Satan had presented himself before the Lord, who was on His throne, the Lord is clearly not speaking to an equal. Besides, can you imagine that God had no idea where Satan had been or what he had been up to? Of course, He knew; He created him for a specific purpose.

When Israel was in captivity in Babylon, God used the prophet Isaiah to comfort them. In Isaiah 54, God explained through the prophet that He would once again bless them and remove tribulation from them.

Isa 54:8 With a little wrath I hid My face from you for a moment; but with everlasting kindness I will have mercy on you, says the LORD, your Redeemer. (NKJV)

He continues in verse 14 explaining that He would protect them from oppression, fear and terror.

Isa 54:14  In righteousness you shall be established; you shall be far from oppression, for you shall not fear; and from terror, for it shall not come near you. (NKJV)

He then makes a curious assertion in verse 15 stating that some will assemble against them, but not because of Me.

Isa 54:15  Indeed they shall surely assemble, but not because of Me. Whoever assembles against you shall fall for your sake. (NKJV)

Then in verse 16 He explains what He meant when He said, “not because of Me.”

Isa 54:16  Behold, I have created the smith that bloweth the coals in the fire, and that bringeth forth an instrument for his work; and I have created the waster to destroy. (KJV)

I emboldened “I have created the waster to destroy” because verse 16 explains how God implements His desires while James 1:13 explains why.

Jas 1:13  Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone. (NKJV)

Two points to note here:

1. The smith (blacksmith) creates ‘an instrument for his work’ which in the waster’s case is ‘to
destroy’.
2. The waster’s method of destruction here is to assemble those who would bring oppression,
fear and terror but is destined to fail because God has determined that ‘Whoever assembles
against you shall fall for your sake.’

1 Kings 22 and 2 Chronicles 18 both describe the same heavenly court as it is revealed to the prophet Micaiah, where God mandates a response to the King of Israel’s inquiry of Him regarding whether or not He would bless the King’s desire to take Ramoth in Gilead back from the Syrians.

1Ki 22:20 And the LORD said, ‘Who will persuade Ahab to go up, that he may fall at Ramoth Gilead?’ So one spoke in this manner, and another spoke in that manner.

Notice in verse 20 how God has already pre-determined that the King of Israel would die and his endeavor fail; i.e. evil would come upon him. The only question to be revealed is how He would bring it about.

1Ki 22:21  Then a spirit came forward and stood before the LORD, and said, ‘I will persuade him.’
1Ki 22:22  The LORD said to him, ‘In what way?’ So he said, ‘I will go out and be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets.’ And the LORD said, ‘You shall persuade him, and also prevail. Go out and do so.’

There it is! God reveals to us that He would ‘persuade’ the King of Israel to move forward with what Ahab already wanted to do thereby bringing about his own end at the hands of the Syrians. God agreed to use a ‘lying spirit’ who  through the prophets  would ‘speak unto [the king] smooth things, prophesy deceits’ (Isa 30:10 KJV)

1Ki 22:23 Therefore look! The LORD has put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these prophets of yours, and the LORD has declared disaster against you. (NKJV)

Lamentations 3 confirms what you’ve just read:

Lam 3:37  Who is he that saith, and it cometh to pass, when the Lord commandeth it not?
Lam 3:38  Out of the mouth of the Most High cometh there not evil and good? (ASV)

It seems that Job’s admonishment of his wife’s outburst came from a common understanding of God at the time.

Job 2:10  You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil (ra’)? (AKJV)

So what does the Hebrew word for evil (ra’) mean? The answer to that question opens another door to understanding everything discussed up until this point. Religion has muddied the waters on this important topic because instead of simply depending on the original meaning of the word, doctrinal preferences impose additional definitions of the word ‘evil’ that didn’t originally exist.

Isa 45:6  That they may know from the rising of the sun, and from the west, that [there is] none beside me. I [am] the LORD, and [there is] none else.
Isa 45:7  I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these [things].

Using Strong’s Concordance let’s break verse 7 down into the Hebrew words that the author used to better understand it.

I form [yatsar] (3335 to form, fashion) the light, and create [bara’] (1254 choose) darkness [choshek] (2822 darkness, obscurity): I make [asah] (6213 accomplish) peace [shalowm] (7965 completeness, soundness, welfare, peace), and create [bara’] (1254 choose) evil [ra’] (7451 adversity): I the LORD [Yhovah] (3068) do all these things [asah] (6213 accomplish).

Since we’re comparing this evil to the one God used to describe the tree in the garden of which He forbade Adam and Eve to eat, let’s look at Genesis 2:9.

And out of the ground made the LORD [Yhovah] (3068) God [Elohiym] (430 ) to grow [tsamach] (6779 to sprout, spring up) every tree [ets] (608 tree, trees, wood) that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree [ets] (608 tree, trees, wood) of knowledge [da’ath] (1847 knowledge) of good [towb] (2896 beautiful) and evil. [ra’] (7451 adversity).

The KJV translates ra’ in the following manner: evil (442), wickedness (59), wicked (25), mischief (21), hurt (20), bad (13), trouble (10), sore (9), affliction (6), ill (5), adversity (4), favoured (3), harm (3), naught (3), noisome (2), grievous (2), sad (2). It is noteworthy that Strong’s chooses to use a translation which occurs only 4 times out of the 629 times the Hebrew word ra’ is found in the old testament whereas 442 times it is translated ‘evil’.

Two of those times are found in Jeremiah 9:3:

Jer 9:3 And they bend their tongues like their bow for lies: but they are not valiant for the truth upon the earth; for they proceed from evil (ra’) to evil (ra’), and they know not me, saith the LORD. (KJV)

Most of the translations use the word evil, and it could be suggested that this might be based on a doctrinal decision given that it is the Lord describing humans proceeding from evil to evil as opposed to God saying, “I make peace and create evil.”

In addition to the word ra’, notice another one that Strong’s seems to accentuate in Isaiah 45:7.

I form the light, and create [bara’] (1254 choose) darkness:

According to Strong’s, God forms the light and ‘chooses’ darkness? What a curious way to describe what He is doing. According to Strong’s, God does it once again later in the same verse when He supposedly ‘chooses’ ‘adversity’ instead of ‘created’ ‘evil’.

I make [asah] (6213 accomplish) peace [shalowm] (7965 completeness, soundness, welfare, peace), and create [bara’] (1254 choose) evil [ra’] (7451 adversity):

God ‘accomplishes’ ‘completeness, soundness, welfare, peace’ and ‘chooses’ ‘adversity’/evil? However, just like Strong’s ‘choice’ of definition of evil [ra’] in these verses, there appears to be a theological motive behind it when you look at the following actual definitions:

According to Strong’s the KJV translates bara’ 54 times and does so in the following manner: create (42x), creator (3x), choose (2x), make (2x), cut down (2x), dispatch (1x), make fat (1x). Once again, notice that Strong’s chooses to emphasize a translation which occurs only 2 times out of the 54 times the Hebrew word bara’ is found in the old testament over the 42 times it is translated ‘create’. An astute ‘Berean’ would be forced to ask the question, “Why?”

Let’s focus on 1 Kings 22:23 to highlight how once again we find the Hebrew word ra’ as found in Isaiah 45:7 and Genesis 2:9 is translated. Notice how the following versions translate ra’:

“. . . the LORD has proclaimed disaster against you.” (NASB 1995/1997)
“. . . the LORD has pronounced disaster against you.” (HCSB)
“. . . the LORD has determined to bring disaster upon you.” (ISV)
“. . . the LORD has decreed disaster for you.” (NET)
“. . . YHWH has spoken calamity concerning you.” (LSV)
“. . . the LORD hath spoken evil concerning you.” (KJV)

Once again it appears that most of the translations/versions strive to choose a translation for the Hebrew word ra’ that absolves God of any hint of moral evil by using terms that make one think of natural disasters, calamity, trouble or harm. Except for the literal translations this is evident in most other translations where the word ra’ is used.

Several important points become evident when reading the passages from 1 Kings, 2 Chronicles and Job.

1. God is intimately involved in the affairs of men
2. God holds a council meeting with spiritual beings/spirits around His throne to discuss specific issues
3.  God solicits input from these spirits regarding options to consider in responding to
circumstances
4.  Once God hears an option of His liking He mandates that the one suggesting the option carry
it out (in this instance a lying spirit/in Job, the one called Satan)
5.  Even though God does not personally tempt/carry out the mandate, He does take credit for
its successful completion in 1 Kings 22, resulting in the evil/disaster/calamity that He has
already determined will come upon Israel and Judah. After Job loses his children, flocks and
eventually his health, God reveals to him, and to us, what man is in relationship to Himself.
Both of these events had already been pre-determined by God according to “the counsel of
His will”.
6. These events were orchestrated, preserved and written for the benefit of the saints as
explained in Rom. 15:4, For whatever things were written before were written for our
learning, that we through the patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.
(NKJV)

These points are relevant in understanding why God, who is good, would create evil. In addition to making that case from the scriptures above, perhaps it would be impactful to hear it directly from God Himself.

The story of Joseph, a son of Jacob, in the book of Genesis is fascinating because it reveals so much about how God uses the evil He created. The important point in this discussion is made clear near the end of the story.

Gen 50:15  When Joseph’s brothers saw that their father was dead, they said, “Perhaps Joseph will hate us, and may actually repay us for all the evil (ra’) which we did to him.”
Gen 50:16  So they sent messengers to Joseph, saying, ‘Before your father died he commanded, saying,
Gen 50:17  Thus you shall say to Joseph: I beg you, please forgive the trespass of your brothers and their sin; for they did evil (ra’) to you. Now, please, forgive the trespass of the servants of the God of your father.’ And Joseph wept when they spoke to him.
Gen 50:18 Then his brothers also went and fell down before his face, and they said, ‘Behold, we are your servants.’
Gen 50:19  Joseph said to them, ‘Do not be afraid, for am I in the place of God?
Gen 50:20  But as for you, you meant evil (rah) against me; but God meant it for good, in order to bring it about as it is this day, to save many people alive.’ (NKJV)

“But as for you, you meant evil (ra’) against me; but God meant it for good . . .”

What an enlightening statement! God used the corruptible human nature of Joseph’s brothers, in this case, jealousy, to commit evil (ra’), i.e. sell Joseph into slavery and plot to deceive their father into believing he had been killed by an animal, but “the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will” was to use the brothers’ evil intentions “. . . to save many people alive.”

While we are given an insider’s view of the inner workings of the council of God in Job, 1 Kings 22 and 2 Chronicles 18, God doesn’t always reveal that process in every decision made, but knowing that God uses evil (rah) to bring about good should help us better understand God and how He operates. Jeremiah 29 is another example of this:

Jer 29:4  Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, to all who were carried away captive, whom I have caused to be carried away from Jerusalem to Babylon:

Jer 29:10  For thus says the LORD: After seventy years are completed at Babylon, I will visit you and perform My good word toward you, and cause you to return to this place.
Jer 29:11  For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil (rah), to give you a future and a hope. (NKJV)

In Jeremiah 29:4, God admits He “caused (the captives of Judah) to be carried away from Jerusalem to Babylon”, but there is more evidence that a heavenly decision was made to take them into and bring them out of captivity in Daniel:

Dan 9:20  Now while I was speaking, praying, and confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the LORD my God for the holy mountain of my God,
Dan 9:21  yes, while I was speaking in prayer, the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, reached me about the time of the evening offering.
Dan 9:22  And he informed me, and talked with me, and said, “O Daniel, I have now come forth to give you skill to understand.
Dan 9:23  At the beginning of your supplications the command went out, and I have come to tell you, for you are greatly beloved; therefore consider the matter, and understand the vision. (NKJV)

At the beginning of Daniel’s supplications (prayers) God commanded/dispatched Gabriel to reveal God’s plan to him. Without this understanding, scriptures like the following can be confusing to the modern mind:

Jdg 9:23  Then God sent an evil (rah’) spirit between Abimelech and the men of Shechem; and the men of Shechem dealt treacherously with Abimelech (KJV)

Or the following:

1Sa 16:14  Now the spirit of the LORD had departed from Saul, and an evil (ra’) spirit from the LORD troubled him.
1Sa 16:15  And Saul’s servants said unto him, Behold now, an evil (ra’) spirit from God troubleth thee. (KJV)

Or the following:

1Sa 18:10  And it came to pass on the morrow, that the evil (ra’) spirit from God came upon Saul, and he prophesied in the midst of the house: and David played with his hand, as at other times: and there was a javelin in Saul’s hand.
1Sa 18:11  And Saul cast the javelin; for he said, I will smite David even to the wall with it. And David avoided out of his presence twice. (KJV)

Or the following:

Amo 3: 6 Shall a trumpet be blown in the city, and the people not be afraid? shall there be evil (ra’) in a city, and the LORD hath not done it? (KJV)

The story of David taking a census of Israel and Judah describes God’s mandate being carried out in real time and reveals more about God’s active role in the process. First, God tells Moses in Exodus 30:11-16 exactly how to carry out a census. He warned the Israelites in verse 11:

Exo 30:11  When you take a census of the Israelites to number them, each man must pay the LORD a ransom for his life when he is counted. Then no plague will come upon them when they are numbered. (Berean Study Bible)

Yet 2 Samuel 24:1 provides a startling revelation regarding how God sometimes ensured that His people did exactly what He told them not to do:

2Sa 24:1  Again the anger of the LORD burned against Israel, and He stirred up David against them, saying, “Go and take a census of Israel and Judah.” (Berean Study Bible)

So God told the Israelites, through Moses, what He required for an acceptable census in Exodus 30 and now He is requiring David to violate that process. Reading verse 1 alone might lead the uninitiated reader to assume that God got David to do this directly, but 1 Chronicles 21:1 reveals, once again, that God used the “waster to destroy” for this purpose:

1Ch 21:1 Then Satan rose up against Israel and incited David to take a census of Israel. (Berean Study Bible)

Joab, commander of David’s army, initially questioned the decision but did as he was ordered. Later in verse 8, David repents of his sin, even though God knew he was incited by a spirit to take the census without following God’s instructions. 2 Samuel 24 and 1 Chronicles 21 both relate the story more or less the same way from that point and again reveal much about the remarkable process God employs in enacting His will. The following is taken from 1 Chronicles 21:

1Ch 21:14  So the LORD sent pestilence upon Israel: and there fell of Israel seventy thousand men.

The next two verses are simply eye-opening; a pestilence/plague is sent to kill 70,000 Israelites and the way God has it done is by directing an angel to stand between earth and heaven with a sword who starts and stops at God’s command.

1Ch 21:15  And God sent an angel unto Jerusalem to destroy it: and as he was destroying, the LORD beheld, and he repented him of the evil (ra’), and said to the angel that destroyed, It is enough, stay now thine hand. And the angel of the LORD stood by the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.
1Ch 21:16  And David lifted up his eyes, and saw the angel of the LORD stand between the earth and the heaven, having a drawn sword in his hand stretched out over Jerusalem. Then David and the elders of Israel, who were clothed in sackcloth, fell upon their faces.
1Ch 21:17  And David said unto God, Is it not I that commanded the people to be numbered? even I it is that have sinned and done evil (ra’) indeed; but as for these sheep, what have they done? let thine hand, I pray thee, O LORD my God, be on me, and on my father’s house; but not on thy people, that they should be plagued.

Astounding! David was incited by God through Satan to do what God had warned the Israelites during Moses’ time not to do and yet David is [giving an accounting] for it. Like all humans, David was corruptible and susceptible to being influenced by circumstances directed by spiritual forces. Unlike all humans, as a man after God’s own heart, David was given ears to hear God’s voice and eyes to see God’s spiritual servants.

David, in his sinful state as a corruptible human being, was provoked by an overwhelmingly powerful outside force to break a commandment of God and therefore could legitimately claim, although he never did, that he wasn’t responsible for taking the census. Even though God had planned this whole episode before David was even born and saw that it was carried out through the wiles of the ‘waster’, God still held Israel, who obeyed the command of their king, to [give an accounting], and, as a result, they were punished.

This is yet another example of what men (David) meant for evil, God meant for good; specifically showing us how God would use His sovereignty and love to overcome our sinful, corruptible nature and create in us a new nature once the new covenant was established through the sacrifice of Christ and His promised indwelling spirit given to us. Since the old covenant was still in effect, David was required to set up an altar for burnt offerings to the Lord.

1Ch 21:18  Then the angel of the LORD commanded Gad to say to David, that David should go up, and set up an altar unto the LORD in the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite.
1Ch 21:19  And David went up at the saying of Gad, which he spake in the name of the LORD.
1Ch 21:20  And Ornan turned back, and saw the angel; and his four sons with him hid themselves. Now Ornan was threshing wheat.
1Ch 21:21  And as David came to Ornan, Ornan looked and saw David, and went out of the threshing floor, and bowed himself to David with his face to the ground.

David then negotiates with the Jebusite to build the altar on Ornan’s threshing floor as God had commanded him.

1Ch 21:26  And David built there an altar unto the LORD, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings, and called upon the LORD; and he answered him from heaven by fire upon the altar of burnt offering.
1Ch 21:27  And the LORD commanded the angel; and he put up his sword again into the sheath thereof.
1Ch 21:28  At that time when David saw that the LORD had answered him in the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite, then he sacrificed there.
1Ch 21:29  For the tabernacle of the LORD, which Moses made in the wilderness, and the altar of the burnt offering, were at that season in the high place at Gibeon.
1Ch 21:30  But David could not go before it to inquire of God: for he was afraid because of the sword of the angel of the LORD. (KJV)

In explaining God’s inclusion of all mankind along with the children of Israel as His chosen people, Paul, in Romans 11, unearths an insight that is confirmed scripturally but is largely unknown to modern Christians:

Rom 11:7  What then? What Israel was seeking, it failed to obtain, but the elect did. The others were hardened,
Rom 11:8  as it is written: “God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that could not see, and ears that could not hear, to this very day.”

“God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that could not see, and ears that could not hear, to this very day!” Paul is referencing the following:

Deu 29:4  Yet the LORD has not given you a heart to perceive and eyes to see and ears to hear, to this very day.

Isa 29:10  For the LORD has poured out on you The spirit of deep sleep, And has closed your eyes, namely, the prophets; And He has covered your heads, namely, the seers.

Isa 6:9  “Go and tell this people, ‘Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’
Isa 6:10  Make the hearts of this people calloused; deafen their ears and close their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed.” (NKJV)

God is literally closing the eyes and ears of those He has called, making it impossible for them to do His will. Today’s Christians who view themselves as God’s people in our time and who are aware of those passages, read them as past tense and do not apply it to themselves. However, Christ himself makes plain in Matthew 13 below of whom He is speaking (see also Mark 4:10-12 and Luke 8:9-10) as He answers why He speaks parables to the multitudes who throng to hear Him speak, i.e. the church of His day, those who are called, and therefore not chosen, as were His disciples. The following passage in Matthew 13 applies to any one of us if we are not chosen, and are therefore blinded and deafened; i.e., unable to hear His voice.

Mat 13:10  Then the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Why do You speak to the people in parables?”
Mat 13:11  He replied, “The knowledge of the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them.
Mat 13:12  Whoever has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.
Mat 13:13  This is why I speak to them in parables: Though seeing, they do not see; though hearing, they do not hear or understand.
Mat 13:14  In them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled: You will be ever hearing but never understanding; you will be ever seeing but never perceiving.
Mat 13:15  For this people’s heart has grown callous; they hardly hear with their ears, and they have closed their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn, and I would heal them.’
Mat 13:16  But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear.
Mat 13:17  For truly I tell you, many prophets and righteous men longed to see what you see but did not see it, and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.”

If we are “healed”, Paul’s message to the Hebrews in chapter 3:15 will apply to us:

Heb 3:15  ‘To-day, if His voice ye may hear, ye may not harden your hearts, as in the provocation,’ (YLT)

Of course it is reasonable to ask, “What happens if we are not chosen and therefore not healed, remaining deaf and blind to hearing or understanding God’s word?” The Christian world, by and large, blithely assumes that if one does not choose Christ as their savior, of his or her own free will of course, then they are consigned to a torment for eternity or, perhaps, ‘mercifully’ annihilated. In other words, the average Christian assumes that they have made the right choice and can therefore ‘see with their eyes, hear with their ears and understand with their hearts’.

Now that we have broadened our perspective on how God interacts with the physical world and “works all things according to the counsel of His will”, let’s revisit the story of Job where Satan answers His creator’s question, ‘From where do you come?’

Job 1:7 So Satan answered the LORD and said, ‘From going to and fro on the earth, and from walkingback and forth on it.’ (KJV)

The Adversary answered the Lord truthfully since he knows his role and to whom he answers as is confirmed in 1 Peter and Job 12.

1Pe 5:8  Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. (NKJV)

Job 12:16  With him (God) is strength and wisdom: the deceived and the deceiver are his. (KJV)

The next five scriptures are often misappropriated by clergy and layman alike. Typically the one given credit as the protagonist in this story is not God, but Satan as if he is in some sense an equal to God. To those who have misread these passages, allow me to use a modified version of Inigo Montoya’s line from the movie, The Princess Bride:

“You keep [misreading those verses]. I do not think it means what you think it means.”

Please read the following verses carefully and ask yourself, who answers to whom?

Job 1:8  Then the LORD said to Satan, ‘Have you considered My servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil?’
Job 1:9   So Satan answered the LORD and said, ‘Does Job fear God for nothing?
Job 1:10  Have You not made a hedge around him, around his household, and around all that he has on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land.
Job 1:11  But now, stretch out Your hand and touch all that he has, and he will surely curse You to Your face!’

Satan knows who is in charge when he acknowledges that God has the power and authority to “stretch out [His] hand and touch all that he has” and God confirms it when He limits Satan’s power over Job in the next verse and as the tool he was created to be, Satan is given permission to destroy what is important to Job, i.e. what he feared most (Job 3:25).

Job 1:12  And the LORD said to Satan, ‘Behold, all that he has is in your power; only do not lay a hand on his person.’ So Satan went out from the presence of the LORD. (NKJV)

After Job loses his children and most of his wealth God hosts another meeting with the angelic cohort including Satan where He once again challenges Satan.

Job 2:3 Then the LORD said to Satan, ‘Have you considered My servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil? And still he holds fast to his integrity, although you incited Me against him, to destroy him without cause.’

What an interesting admission: ‘you (Satan) incited Me (God) against him (Job), to destroy him without cause.’ This is why readers misunderstand who is the protagonist (God, not Satan) and who is the antagonist (Satan, not God). God knew the ‘tool’ Satan was created to be would respond with a desire to ‘destroy’ when presented with a challenge by his creator.

In response Satan answered the Lord and said:

Job 2:4  “Skin for skin! Yes, all that a man has he will give for his life.
Job 2:5  But stretch out Your hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will surely curse You to Your face!”

Once again, God granted him authority and power to bring evil upon Job but with a limit.

Job 2:6 And the LORD said to Satan, “Behold, he is in your hand, but spare his life.”

So now an important question must be addressed. Philippians 2 contains an interesting verse that is generally overlooked. Verse 12 is often quoted to encourage us to do our part; i.e. exercise our ‘free will’ regarding our salvation.

Php 2:12  Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling;

The emboldened phrase is what is usually emphasized but that exhortation is followed by a huge qualifier:

Php 2:13  for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.

In a quite emphatic confirmation of God’s sovereignty, Isaiah asserts that God will do what He wants.

Isa 46:10 Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done, Saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure,’

We have already seen multiple times that what someone might have meant for evil, God meant for good or ‘. . . His good pleasure’. If it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure, then does it follow that this could include evil? Proverbs 16:4 clearly affirms:

Pro 16:4  The LORD hath made all [things] for himself: yea, even the wicked for the day of evil. (KJV)

Proverbs 16:1 confirms Philippians 2:13:

Pro 16:1 The preparations of the heart in man, and the answer of the tongue, [is] from the LORD. (KJV)

Isaiah 63:17 frames it in no uncertain terms,

Isa 63:17  O LORD, why hast thou made us to err from thy ways, [and] hardened our heart from thy fear? (KJV)

Job 23:13-14 not only asserts that God is in control, He has many plans regarding you and me and that He does what He wants:

Job 23:13-14  But He is unchangeable, and who can oppose Him? He does what He desires. For He carries out His decree against me, and He has many such plans. (Berean Study Bible)

What are those plans? Following are some of the scriptures alluding to these plans and an interesting similarity between all of them is their connection to this revelation found in Ecclesiastes 1:13.

Ecc 1:13  I applied my heart to inquiring and exploring by wisdom concerning all that is done under the heavens: It is an experience of evil (ra’) Elohim (God) has given to the sons of humanity to humble them by it. (Concordant Literal Version/CLV)

“[A]n experience of evil [God] has given to the sons of humanity to humble them by it” was the wisdom given to Solomon as he inquired from God understanding about “all that is done under the heavens”.

The analogy of the Potter and the Clay in Jeremiah 18 highlights God’s relationship with ancient Israel as a physical nation under the physical application of a spiritual law.

Jer 18:1  The word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,
Jer 18:2  Arise, and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will cause thee to hear my words.
Jer 18:3  Then I went down to the potter’s house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels.
Jer 18:4  And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it.

While the human potter can inadvertently mar a clay vessel, God would only do so for a specific purpose; i.e. “according to the counsel of His will”.

Jer 18:5  Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying,
Jer 18:6  O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as this potter? saith the LORD. Behold, as the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are ye in mine hand, O house of Israel.

God now gives the parameters for when He would bring evil/disaster/destruction upon ‘a nation/kingdom’ (in this case physical Israel/Judah/Jerusalem) and when He would bless/build up/plant the same.

Jer 18:7  At what instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up, and to pull down, and to destroy it;
Jer 18:8  If that nation, against whom I have pronounced, turn from their evil (ra’), I will repent of the evil (ra’) that I thought to do unto them.
Jer 18:9  And at what instant I shall speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to build and to plant it;
Jer 18:10  If it do evil (ra’) in my sight, that it obey not my voice, then I will repent of the good, wherewith I said I would benefit them.
Jer 18:11  Now therefore go to, speak to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying, Thus saith the LORD; Behold, I frame evil (ra’) against you, and devise a device against you: return ye now everyone from his evil (ra’) way, and make your ways and your doings good.

Shockingly, in spite of God’s warning, the people admit they are incapable of avoiding God’s wrath.

Jer 18:12  And they said, There is no hope: but we will walk after our own devices, and we will every one do the imagination of his evil (ra’) heart. (KJV)

Solomon describes man’s condition in much the same way in Psalms 14:1-7 which Paul quotes in Romans as he reveals that God is the God of the Gentiles as well as of the Jews.

Rom 3:10  As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:
Rom  3:11  There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.
Rom 3:12  They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. (KJV)

In spite of this God has declared that He will show mercy on whom He decides to show mercy, not because of what they do or have done.

Rom 9:15  For He says to Moses, “I will have mercy on whomever I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whomever I will have compassion.”
Rom 9:16  So then it is not of him who wills, nor of him who runs, but of God who shows mercy.
Rom 9:17  For the Scripture says to the Pharaoh, “For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I may show My power in you, and that My name may be declared in all the earth.”
Rom 9:18  Therefore He has mercy on whom He wills, and whom He wills He hardens.

Reading this section of Romans 9 is difficult for most Christians because it simply but plainly disrupts their worldview, just as it did for the Jew and Gentile in Paul’s time when he knew what any normal human’s reaction to what he’d stated so far would be. That’s why he then wrote:

Rom 9:19  You will say to me then, “Why does He still find fault? For who has resisted His will?”

Paul then restates the response God gave to Job in chapters 38-42 in a shortened version.

Rom 9:20 But indeed, O man, who are you to reply against God? Will the thing formed say to him who formed it, “Why have you made me like this?”

Paul uses the same analogy of the potter and clay found in Jeremiah 18 to show God’s power to use the evil He created for ‘His good pleasure’, ‘according to the counsel of His will’.

Rom 9:21  Does not the potter have power over the clay, from the same lump to make one vessel for honor and another for dishonor?

Paul explains in the eighth chapter of Romans the full reason why humanity was given ‘an experience of evil/dishonor [by] Elohim (God) . . . to humble [us] by it’.

Rom 8:18  For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
Rom 8:19  For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.
Rom 8:20  For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope,
Rom 8:21  Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.
Rom 8:22  For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.

‘[T]ravaileth in pain together’ is an allusion to childbirth which for Eve became more painful after she and Adam sinned by disobeying God in eating of the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil as described in Genesis 3:16.

Gen 3:16  To the woman he said, ‘I will surely multiply your pain in childbearing; in pain you shall bring forth children.’

Stated another way, Eve listened to Satan’s lie and disobeyed God ensuring that both of them would become like God, knowing good and evil, and as a result bring evil (God’s wrath) upon themselves and in spite of Satan’s lie would eventually die anyway. Fortunately God already had ‘many such plans’.

I will end by allowing the scriptures below to speak for themselves and if you are given to see the joy that I now experience because of the promises made giving me the hope that now lies within me (and I pray that you will) then we can rejoice together now.

1Co 3:10  According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon.
1Co 3:11  For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
1Co 3:12  Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble;
1Co 3:13  Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is.
1Co 3:14  If any man’s work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward.
1Co 3:15 If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.

Rom 8:23  And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.
Rom 8:24  For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for?
Rom 8:25  But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it.

Rom 8:28  And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
Rom 8:29  For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. (KJV)

Joh 3:17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.

1Co 15:22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.

1Ti 2:4  Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.

1Ti 4:10  For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially [not ‘exclusively’] of those that believe.

2Pe 3:9  The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

1 Jn 2:2 And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.

Exo 5:1-23 Let My People go, that They may Hold a Feast unto Me in the Wilderness

[Study Aired April 11, 2022]

Exo 5:1  And afterward Moses and Aaron went in, and told Pharaoh, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Let my people go, that they may hold a feast unto me in the wilderness. 
Exo 5:2  And Pharaoh said, Who is the LORD, that I should obey his voice to let Israel go? I know not the LORD, neither will I let Israel go. 
Exo 5:3  And they said, The God of the Hebrews hath met with us: let us go, we pray thee, three days’ journey into the desert, and sacrifice unto the LORD our God; lest he fall upon us with pestilence, or with the sword. 
Exo 5:4  And the king of Egypt said unto them, Wherefore do ye, Moses and Aaron, let the people from their works? get you unto your burdens. 
Exo 5:5  And Pharaoh said, Behold, the people of the land now are many, and ye make them rest from their burdens. 
Exo 5:6  And Pharaoh commanded the same day the taskmasters of the people, and their officers, saying, 
Exo 5:7  Ye shall no more give the people straw to make brick, as heretofore: let them go and gather straw for themselves. 
Exo 5:8  And the tale of the bricks, which they did make heretofore, ye shall lay upon them; ye shall not diminish ought thereof: for they be idle; therefore they cry, saying, Let us go and sacrifice to our God. 
Exo 5:9  Let there more work be laid upon the men, that they may labour therein; and let them not regard vain words. 
Exo 5:10  And the taskmasters of the people went out, and their officers, and they spake to the people, saying, Thus saith Pharaoh, I will not give you straw. 
Exo 5:11  Go ye, get you straw where ye can find it: yet not ought of your work shall be diminished. 
Exo 5:12  So the people were scattered abroad throughout all the land of Egypt to gather stubble instead of straw. 
Exo 5:13  And the taskmasters hasted them, saying, Fulfil your works, your daily tasks, as when there was straw. 
Exo 5:14  And the officers of the children of Israel, which Pharaoh’s taskmasters had set over them, were beaten, and demanded, Wherefore have ye not fulfilled your task in making brick both yesterday and to day, as heretofore? 
Exo 5:15  Then the officers of the children of Israel came and cried unto Pharaoh, saying, Wherefore dealest thou thus with thy servants? 
Exo 5:16  There is no straw given unto thy servants, and they say to us, Make brick: and, behold, thy servants are beaten; but the fault is in thine own people. 
Exo 5:17  But he said, Ye are idle, ye are idle: therefore ye say, Let us go and do sacrifice to the LORD. 
Exo 5:18  Go therefore now, and work; for there shall no straw be given you, yet shall ye deliver the tale of bricks. 
Exo 5:19  And the officers of the children of Israel did see that they were in evil case, after it was said, Ye shall not minish ought from your bricks of your daily task. 
Exo 5:20  And they met Moses and Aaron, who stood in the way, as they came forth from Pharaoh: 
Exo 5:21  And they said unto them, The LORD look upon you, and judge; because ye have made our savour to be abhorred in the eyes of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of his servants, to put a sword in their hand to slay us. 
Exo 5:22  And Moses returned unto the LORD, and said, Lord, wherefore hast thou so evil entreated this people? why is it that thou hast sent me? 
Exo 5:23  For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in thy name, he hath done evil to this people; neither hast thou delivered thy people at all. 

This chapter deals with the first encounter of Moses and Aaron with Pharaoh and the consequence of this encounter. It shows us our initial struggles with the man of sin or the old man in our lives and what happens to us as a result. The chapter also shows us how we are marred in the hands of our Lord, the potter.

Jer 18:1  The word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying,
Jer 18:2  Arise, and go down to the potter’s house, and there I will cause thee to hear my words.
Jer 18:3  Then I went down to the potter’s house, and, behold, he wrought a work on the wheels.
Jer 18:4  And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it.

Exo 5:1  And afterward Moses and Aaron went in, and told Pharaoh, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Let my people go, that they may hold a feast unto me in the wilderness. 

In this verse, an important title of God is mentioned: Jehovah, God of Israel. Jehovah is the unique self-existing one. He is the one who was, who is, and who will be. Only of Him can the verb “to be” be applied in an absolute sense. The title given to the Lord in this verse is the God of Israel. The title “the God of Israel” indicates that God is the God of a transformed people. Jacob was the name of a natural man, but when he was transformed, he became Israel. Israel, according to Strong, means “He will rule as God”. This name implies victory and kingship. In other words, the transformed people are victors and are also kings. Just imagine the situation that Israel endured in Egypt and the Lord calling them as a transformed people who will become victors over the flesh (Pharaoh) and will reign as kings with Christ. It is beyond comprehension!!

Rom 4:17  (As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations,) before him whom he believed, even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were.

The same principle applies to the way our Lord sees us today!! In the eyes of the Lord, we are victors and kings!! However, if our eyes are set on our spiritual condition, we may regard ourselves as being pitiful just like the Israelites in Egypt. Let’s not be short-sighted and limited in our vision by our present situation or predicament.

God does not regard you as one still in bondage under Pharaoh. Do you dare believe that you are such an Israelite, such a victor and king? Believe the word of the Lord, and if God says that you are an Israelite, then you are an Israelite, whether you feel this way about yourself or not.

When the Lord comes to us with His brightness, which is His words, that is when we begin to confront the beast or the old man within us, symbolized by Pharaoh. Here, Moses and Aaron told Pharaoh to let the people of Israel go to hold a feast to the Lord in the wilderness. The word ‘feast’ also means to celebrate. It is during celebrations that we offer sacrifices and thanks to the Lord. So, what we are being told here is that in order to celebrate our Lord in this world (wilderness), or to offer a pleasing offering and sacrifice to the Lord, we must overcome or not be under the influence of the flesh or the old man within. Celebration also has to do with eating and drinking. As we are aware, eating and drinking has to do with the word of the Lord. This means that our understanding of the word of the Lord and the power to do according to word of the Lord increases as the power of the beast within diminishes as a result of the Lord’s judgment of the beast.

Rom 12:1  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
Rom 12:2  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. 

Exo 5:2  And Pharaoh said, Who is the LORD, that I should obey his voice to let Israel go? I know not the LORD, neither will I let Israel go. 

What Pharaoh is saying in this verse is to let us know the nature of the beast within. That is, the beast or the old man resists or opposes Christ. This is the antichrist spoken of in the scriptures. Once we are under the dominion of the beast or the old man, then we become deceivers.

1Jn 2:18  Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time.

1Jn 2:22  Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and the Son.

1Jn 4:3  And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.

2Jn 1:7  For many deceivers are entered into the world, who confess not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh. This is a deceiver and an antichrist.

Exo 5:3  And they said, The God of the Hebrews hath met with us: let us go, we pray thee, three days’ journey into the desert, and sacrifice unto the LORD our God; lest he fall upon us with pestilence, or with the sword.

Our exit from Egypt is to be accompanied by a three-day journey into the wilderness where we can offer sacrifices to the Lord. The wilderness here is the world. Our walk with Christ starts after leaving Egypt, and the three-day journey refers to all we go through in this life (desert or wilderness) as part of the spiritual maturity process destined for us. This spiritual maturity is accomplished through judgment. It is when we are maturing that we are able to offer our bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to the Lord.

Rom 12:1  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
Rom 12:2  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

In verse 3 above, we are also told that Pharaoh’s refusal to let the people go on this three-day journey means that the Lord will visit the people with pestilence or with the sword. There are therefore two categories of people – those who through the mighty acts of the Lord are able to break free from the shackles of Pharaoh (the old man) to offer a living sacrifice to the Lord in this life, and those who are not able to break free from Pharaoh’s dominion. Those who are able to break free from Pharaoh’s dominion are the elect, and those who are not able to do so represent Babylon and the people of the world. As we are aware, pestilence and the sword are part of the Lord’s four sore judgments. Those who break free from Pharaoh’s grip go through a three-day journey which means that they mature through judgment. Those who are not able to do so and remain under Pharaoh’s rule will also be judged through pestilence or the sword in the fullness of time.

Eze 14:21  For thus saith the Lord GOD; How much more when I send my four sore judgments upon Jerusalem, the sword, and the famine, and the noisome beast, and the pestilence, to cut off from it man and beast?

Exo 5:4  And the king of Egypt said unto them, Wherefore do ye, Moses and Aaron, let the people from their works? get you unto your burdens.
Exo 5:5  And Pharaoh said, Behold, the people of the land now are many, and ye make them rest from their burdens.

On a positive note, what the king of Egypt said about Moses and Aaron making the people of Israel rest from their burdens is true. It is only when we are free from the dominion of the beast within that we are free from the burden of sin. That is when we find rest. Without dealing with the source of sin in our lives (the old man), all our effort to stop sinning will be in vain.

Rom 7:18  For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. 

Rom 7:23  But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. 
Rom 7:24  O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? 
Rom 7:25  I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.

In other words, getting rest in the Lord is through the process of the death of our old man. With the old man still alive in us, finding rest becomes an illusion. The objective of the old man is to keep us busy with our own works, but Moses, representing Christ, has come into our lives so that we might have rest!!

Mat 11:28  Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 
Mat 11:29  Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. 
Mat 11:30  For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

Exo 5:6  And Pharaoh commanded the same day the taskmasters of the people, and their officers, saying, 
Exo 5:7  Ye shall no more give the people straw to make brick, as heretofore: let them go and gather straw for themselves. 
Exo 5:8  And the tale of the bricks, which they did make heretofore, ye shall lay upon them; ye shall not diminish ought thereof: for they be idle; therefore they cry, saying, Let us go and sacrifice to our God. 
Exo 5:9  Let there more work be laid upon the men, that they may labour therein; and let them not regard vain words.

It is when we desire to free ourselves of the influence of the beast within that we come to see how powerless we are before the beast. We become worse off, and in the process, we lose hope of becoming free from the beast’s influence. This is all the work of the Lord so that we do not think we have something to offer our Lord regarding His plan of deliverance (salvation) for us.

2Pe 2:18  For when they speak great swelling words of vanity, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were clean escaped from them who live in error. 
2Pe 2:19  While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption: for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage. 
2Pe 2:20  For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. 
2Pe 2:21  For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them. 
2Pe 2:22  But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire.

In verse 9, Pharaoh did not want God’s people to regard vain words. These “vain words” however, were actually the word of God. The same is true today. Those who are dominated by the beast within (the people of the world and our brothers and sisters in Babylon) regard what we are learning of the word of the Lord as being nothing more than vain words. What we are doing in our gatherings may be idle in the eyes of worldly people including Babylon, but what they are doing is vanity in the eyes of the Lord. Egypt (the world) is filled with busyness. Everyone still under bondage in Egypt is very busy.

Exo 5:10  And the taskmasters of the people went out, and their officers, and they spake to the people, saying, Thus saith Pharaoh, I will not give you straw. 
Exo 5:11  Go ye, get you straw where ye can find it: yet not ought of your work shall be diminished. 
Exo 5:12  So the people were scattered abroad throughout all the land of Egypt to gather stubble instead of straw.

The Egyptians, under the instructions of their king, increased the burden of the Israelites by asking them to get straw themselves as input to their daily work. The taskmasters here represent the beast or the old man within us from whose influence we desire to free ourselves. Verse 12 says that the Israelites were scattered abroad throughout all the land of Egypt to gather straw. The straw here represents our works or deeds which do not please the Lord. These must be burnt with unquenchable fire.

Luk 3:17  Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and will gather the wheat into his garner; but the chaff he will burn with fire unquenchable.

Straw also symbolizes us, as we are blown by every wind of doctrine in this world before our Lord comes to us to deliver us from the old man.

Job 21:18  They are as stubble before the wind, and as chaff that the storm carrieth away.

Psa 1:4  The ungodly are not so: but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away.

Exo 5:13  And the taskmasters hasted them, saying, Fulfil your works, your daily tasks, as when there was straw. 
Exo 5:14  And the officers of the children of Israel, which Pharaoh’s taskmasters had set over them, were beaten, and demanded, Wherefore have ye not fulfilled your task in making brick both yesterday and to day, as heretofore? 

At a certain point of our walk with the Lord, we are basically held captive by sin as the beast within or the old man (taskmasters) dominates us in fulfilling the things of the flesh. The prophet Joel spoke about our condition under the control of the beast within as follows:

Joe 1:2  Hear this, ye old men, and give ear, all ye inhabitants of the land. Hath this been in your days, or even in the days of your fathers? 
Joe 1:3  Tell ye your children of it, and let your children tell their children, and their children another generation. 
Joe 1:4  That which the palmerworm hath left hath the locust eaten; and that which the locust hath left hath the cankerworm eaten; and that which the cankerworm hath left hath the caterpiller eaten. 
Joe 1:5  Awake, ye drunkards, and weep; and howl, all ye drinkers of wine, because of the new wine; for it is cut off from your mouth. 
Joe 1:6  For a nation is come up upon my land, strong, and without number, whose teeth are the teeth of a lion, and he hath the cheek teeth of a great lion. 
Joe 1:7  He hath laid my vine waste, and barked my fig tree: he hath made it clean bare, and cast it away; the branches thereof are made white.

Exo 5:15  Then the officers of the children of Israel came and cried unto Pharaoh, saying, Wherefore dealest thou thus with thy servants? 
Exo 5:16  There is no straw given unto thy servants, and they say to us, Make brick: and, behold, thy servants are beaten; but the fault is in thine own people.

Pharaoh, or the taskmasters, can externally be likened to our leaders in Babylon. We must remember that Egypt can also represent Babylon. Our leaders themselves do not have the keys to the kingdom of heaven during our time in Babylon, but they require us to live a life that pleases the Lord. The burden they put on us is heavy because trying to please God with our effort or strength is such an onerous task that brings frustration. Our Lord Jesus talked about this as follows:

Mat 23:1  Then spake Jesus to the multitude, and to his disciples,
Mat 23:2  Saying, The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat:
Mat 23:3  All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not. 
Mat 23:4  For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.

Mat 23:13  But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.

Exo 5:17  But he said, Ye are idle, ye are idle: therefore ye say, Let us go and do sacrifice to the LORD.

Our natural or worldly mentality powered by the beast within, or the flesh, is that anything in which we do not exert our energies we should regard as laziness or being idle. Right from the very onset of our walk with Christ, we were admonished that we are responsible for our actions and that we are supposed to work out our own salvation. This mentality was the basis of our walk while in Egypt and later in Babylon. It is therefore, no surprise that Pharaoh, representing the beast or the old man, should reprimand the Israelites (the elect) that they are idle and do not want to work. However, the truth about the words of the Lord is that He does everything for us. All we need to do is believe, and even this belief is of Christ. Therefore, we bring nothing to the table of our salvation!! All is of the Lord. To the natural man, this is laziness or idleness!!

Isa 59:16  And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his arm brought salvation unto him (us); and his righteousness, it sustained him (us).

Rom 9:16  So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.

Exo 14:13  And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will shew to you to day: for the Egyptians whom ye have seen to day, ye shall see them again no more for ever. 
Exo 14:14  The LORD shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace.

Joh 6:28  Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? 
Joh 6:29  Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.

Exo 5:18  Go therefore now, and work; for there shall no straw be given you, yet shall ye deliver the tale of bricks.
Exo 5:19  And the officers of the children of Israel did see that they were in evil case, after it was said, Ye shall not minish ought from your bricks of your daily task.

Instead of letting Israel go, Pharaoh actually increased their labor with rigor by commanding that they be given no more straw. This is the same with our experience. When the Lord is about to rescue us from the world, the evil one is allowed to take away our “straw”, that is, he deprives us of the supply from the world. This forces us to work with more rigor to make a living and may become a trap to take us away from the Lord. The Lord’s salvation is to rescue us out of our busyness in this world and to bring us into ‘idleness’ (our gathering together and what every joint supplies). Many people today are too busy caring for the things of this life such that they have no time to feast with the Lord. We need to be delivered from this busyness in order to have more time for “idleness”.

Our living and our existence depend on the provision from the heavenly source, not on the supply from the world. We need this vision to be our guiding principle as we exercise our faith that He is able to take care of all our needs!! Moses was a man of great faith to lead two million people out of Egypt into the wilderness, where there was no earthly supply for their human existence. May the Lord help us, to walk by faith and not by sight!!

2Co 5:7  For we walk by faith, not by sight:

Exo 5:20  And they met Moses and Aaron, who stood in the way, as they came forth from Pharaoh:
Exo 5:21  And they said unto them, The LORD look upon you, and judge; because ye have made our savour to be abhorred in the eyes of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of his servants, to put a sword in their hand to slay us.

Moses and Aaron signify the elect and Israel under bondage in Egypt, and Egypt here represents Babylon. Our brothers and sisters in Babylon think that we are dead spiritually and that the message of salvation through judgment is not what they are hoping for but a doomsday message that puts a sword in the hand of their enemies to slay them. This is all of the Lord as their eyes have not been opened, and their ears are dull of hearing.

Rev 11:8  And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified. 

Mat 13:13  Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand.
Mat 13:14  And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive:
Mat 13:15  For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.

Exo 5:22  And Moses returned unto the LORD, and said, Lord, wherefore hast thou so evil entreated this people? why is it that thou hast sent me?
Exo 5:23  For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in thy name, he hath done evil to this people; neither hast thou delivered thy people at all.

Verses 22 and 23 indicate that Moses was bothered and discouraged. Moses even asked the Lord why He had sent him. Furthermore, Moses said to the Lord, “Neither hast thou delivered thy people at all.” Many of us have had similar experiences. The more we think we are getting closer to the Lord through the enlightenment of His words, the more we go through certain circumstances of suffering that discourage us. This caused us to become troubled and discouraged just like Moses. Do not think, however, that increased suffering is a negative sign. Our suffering is a sign that God is in the process of delivering us from our enemy within – the old man or the beast.

Php 1:12  But I would ye should understand, brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel; 

2Co 1:8  For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself.
2Co 1:9  Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead. 
2Co 1:10  He delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again. 

2Co 4:16  So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day. 
2Co 4:17  For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, 
2Co 4:18  as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.

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Prophecy of Isaiah – Isa 63:15-19 Why Have You Made us to Err From Your Ways?

[Study Aired August 9, 2020]

Isa 63:15  Look down from heaven, and behold from the habitation of thy holiness and of thy glory: where is thy zeal and thy strength, the sounding of thy bowels and of thy mercies toward me? are they restrained?
Isa 63:16  Doubtless thou art our father, though Abraham be ignorant of us, and Israel acknowledge us not: thou, O LORD, art our father, our redeemer; thy name is from everlasting.
Isa 63:17  O LORD, why hast thou made us to err from thy ways, and hardened our heart from thy fear? Return for thy servants’ sake, the tribes of thine inheritance.
Isa 63:18  The people of thy holiness have possessed it but a little while: our adversaries have trodden down thy sanctuary.
Isa 63:19  We are thine: thou never barest rule over them; they were not called by thy name.

In our last study of verses 6-14 of this chapter, Isaiah is led by the Lord to remind us of God’s great mercies towards us as His people:

Isa 63:7  I will mention the lovingkindnesses of the LORD, and the praises of the LORD, according to all that the LORD hath bestowed on us, and the great goodness toward the house of Israel, which he hath bestowed on them according to his mercies, and according to the multitude of his lovingkindnesses.
Isa 63:8  For he said, Surely they are my people, children that will not lie: so he was their Saviour.
Isa 63:9  In all their affliction he was afflicted, and the angel of his presence saved them: in his love and in his pity he redeemed them; and he bare them, and carried them all the days of old.

At the same time, he is inspired to remind us that we have indeed rebelled against the Lord:

Isa 63:10  But they rebelled, and vexed his holy Spirit: therefore he was turned to be their enemy, and he fought against them.

A mere one verse reminds us of our desire to return to Egypt, as a sow to her wallow in the mire and as a dog to his vomit. In that one verse He tells us that when He hardens our hearts and makes us to err, He becomes our enemy. It is all His work after the counsel of His own will” (Eph 1:11).

Then the Lord goes right back to reminding us of His great mercies toward us and of all the great works He performs on our behalf and how He always brings us “up out of the sea with the shepherd of His flock”. He reminds us of all He has done for us by having us remember what He has done within us and in our midst, and He even asks “Where is He that brought them up out of the sea… that led them by the right hand of Moses… that divided the Red Sea” (Psa 136:13), a type of resurrection from the dead.

Isa 63:11  Then he remembered the days of old, Moses, and his people, saying, Where is he that brought them up out of the [Red] sea with the shepherd of his flock? where is he that put his holy Spirit within him?
Isa 63:12  That led them by the right hand of Moses with his glorious arm, dividing the water before them, to make himself an everlasting name?

The Lord concludes with these words concerning Himself:

Isa 63:13  That led them through the deep, as an horse in the wilderness, that they should not stumble?
Isa 63:14  As a beast goeth down into the valley, the Spirit of the LORD caused him to rest: so didst thou lead thy people, to make thyself a glorious name.

Those words are a short summary of how the Lord is working with all of mankind. We begin our walk with the Lord as “carnal… babes in Christ” (1Co 3:1-4). As babies He literally takes us by the hand, and with so much patience, He leads us into maturity. However, maturity takes many long years, and we are one and all prodigal sons along that path and during that journey. It is the Lord who gives us “an experience of evil” to humble us, and then He delivers us from our own humiliation which He has caused us to experience because of the corruptible earthy composition with which He has at first made us to be, and through which He makes us to err from His ways and hardens our hearts from His fear.

Ecc 1:13 I applied my heart to inquiring and exploring by wisdom concerning all that is done under the heavens: it is an experience of evil Elohim has given to the sons of humanity to humble them by it. (CLV)

The life of every man is a work of the Lord, “Yes, even the wicked for the day of evil” within each of us. It is all a work of His love and His patient mercy towards all His creatures.

That was the message of our last study, and our study today continues with that same theme of what the Lord is doing to “drag” us to Himself.

Isaiah is led to speak for us all when He asks the Lord:

Isa 63:15  Look down from heaven, and behold from the habitation of thy holiness and of thy glory: where is thy zeal and thy strength, the sounding of thy bowels and of thy mercies toward me? are they restrained?

When Isaiah pleads for us “…where is thy zeal and thy strength, the sounding of thy bowels and of thy mercies toward me? are they restrained?” he is expressing our own sense of being forsaken and forgotten by the Lord while He puts us through our own ‘experience of evil’ to humble us. The book of Job, according to the Jewish scholars, and it is agreed by most scholars, was written before Moses existed. Therefore, it would have been familiar to both kings David and his son Solomon, who tells us that it is the Lord who has given us “an experience of evil” (Ecc 1:13). So when Isaiah asks, “Where is thy zeal and thy strength, the sounding of thy bowels and of thy mercies toward me? are they restrained?”… The Lord does indeed restrain His strength and His mercy toward us while He is causing us to rebel against Himself. In fact, He actually becomes our enemy, while He is in the process of dragging us to Himself. We will not just naturally seek Him, and we certainly do not just naturally appreciate the pain which our sins bring upon us. It requires ‘suffering for a season’ to bring us to ourselves.

Luk 15:17  And when he came to himself, he said, How many hired servants of my father’s have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger!
Luk 15:18  I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee,
Luk 15:19  And am no more worthy to be called thy son: make me as one of thy hired servants.

1Pe 5:10  But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.

The story of Job is also our story. “Suffering for a while” is what is essential to bring us to see the self-righteous second beast we all are in our own time (Rev 13:11). In time we come to know the Lord face to face, and at that point we are all forced to face our own “vile” self-righteousness and admit that in our self-righteousness we have been found guilty of “contending with… reproving… disannulling His judgment, and condemning” God Himself, all for the purpose of maintaining our own supposed integrity and to make ourselves righteous.

This is who we are:

Job 27:5  God forbid that I should justify you: till I die I will not remove mine integrity from me.
Job 27:6  My righteousness I hold fast, and will not let it go: my heart shall not reproach me so long as I live.

If we are the Lord’s faithful elect, this is how He is working with us in “this present time” (Rom 8:18):

Job 40:1  Moreover the LORD answered Job, and said,
Job 40:2  Shall he that contendeth with the Almighty instruct him? he that reproveth God, let him answer it.
Job 40:3  Then Job answered the LORD, and said,
Job 40:4  Behold, I am vile; what shall I answer thee? I will lay mine hand upon my mouth.
Job 40:5  Once have I spoken; but I will not answer: yea, twice; but I will proceed no further.
Job 40:6  Then answered the LORD unto Job out of the whirlwind, and said,
Job 40:7  Gird up thy loins now like a man: I will demand of thee, and declare thou unto me.
Job 40:8  Wilt thou also disannul my judgment? wilt thou condemn me, that thou mayest be righteous?

When the Lord finally does show us just how vile and self-righteous we are and when He gives us “place of repentance”, then He again comforts us and rewards us for what “His hand [and] His workmanship” have accomplished within us:

Isa 64:8  But now, O LORD, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand.

Eph 2:10  For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

Heb 12:17  For ye know how that afterward, when he would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected: for he found no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears.

So, Isaiah reminds us who we are as the Lord’s accepted anointed who are given “place of repentance [in] this present time” (Rom 8:18).

Isa 63:16  Doubtless thou art our father, though Abraham be ignorant of us, and Israel acknowledge us not: thou, O LORD, art our father, our redeemer; thy name is from everlasting.

Both Abraham and Jacob, whose name was changed to Israel, are long dead, and “the dead know not anything”:

Ecc 9:4  For to him that is joined to all the living there is hope: for a living dog is better than a dead lion.
Ecc 9:5  For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not any thing, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten.
Ecc 9:6  Also their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is now perished; neither have they any more a portion for ever in any thing that is done under the sun.

The great men of God of old who have died in faith did not receive the promises and are manifestly incapable of helping themselves, much less you and me. Abraham and Israel are both dead, but Christ is not dead and is “the firstfruits of them that slept” and is seated ‘at His Father’s right hand ruling in the kingdoms of men’ at this very moment.

Mar 12:36  For David himself said by the Holy Ghost, The LORD said to my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, till I make thine enemies thy footstool.

1Co 15:20  But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.

The Lord wants us to know that He has not lost control over His creatures and that, quite to the contrary, “the Most High rules in the kingdom of men”, and the kings of the earth and the rulers and the people are all “do[ing] whatsoever [His] hand and [His] counsel determined before to be done” (Act 4:23-28).

Here is what the scriptures teach on this subject:

Dan 4:17  This matter is by the decree of the watchers, and the demand by the word of the holy ones: to the intent that the living may know that the most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will, and setteth up over it the basest of men.

Mat 28:16  Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, into a mountain where Jesus had appointed them.
Mat 28:17  And when they saw him, they worshipped him: but some doubted.
Mat 28:18  And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.

Act 4:23  And being let go, they went to their own company, and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said unto them.
Act 4:24  And when they heard that, they lifted up their voice to God with one accord, and said, Lord, thou art God, which hast made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all that in them is:
Act 4:25  Who by the mouth of thy servant David hast said, Why did the heathen rage, and the people imagine vain things?
Act 4:26  The kings of the earth stood up, and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord, and against his Christ.
Act 4:27  For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together,
Act 4:28  For to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined before to be done.

Heb 11:13  These all died in faith, not having received the promises [Enoch in verse 5: Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, verses 8-9], but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.

In the very next chapter, Isaiah reminds the Lord that He is indeed our Father:

Isa 64:5  Thou meetest him that rejoiceth and worketh righteousness, those that remember thee in thy ways: behold, thou art wroth; for we have sinned: in those is continuance, and we shall be saved.
Isa 64:6  But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.
Isa 64:7  And there is none that calleth upon thy name, that stirreth up himself to take hold of thee: for thou hast hid thy face from us, and hast consumed us, because of our iniquities.
Isa 64:8  But now, O LORD, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand.
Isa 64:9  Be not wroth very sore, O LORD, neither remember iniquity for ever: behold, see, we beseech thee, we are all thy people.

Christ Himself acknowledged that the Jews were indeed the physical descendants of Abraham:

Joh 8:37  I know that ye are Abraham’s seed; but ye seek to kill me, because my word hath no place in you.

However, a mere two verses later, He denies that the Jews are Abraham’s spiritual children:

Joh 8:39  They answered and said unto him, Abraham is our father. Jesus saith unto them, If ye were Abraham’s children, ye would do the works of Abraham.
Joh 8:40  But now ye seek to kill me, a man that hath told you the truth, which I have heard of God: this did not Abraham.
Joh 8:41  Ye do the deeds of your father. Then said they to him, We be not born of fornication; we have one Father, even God.
Joh 8:42  Jesus said unto them, If God were your Father, ye would love me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me.
Joh 8:43  Why do ye not understand my speech? even because ye cannot hear my word.
Joh 8:44  Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.

Then the prophet Isaiah puts into very plain words a Truth which has been made clear throughout scripture and from the beginning, but is neither seen nor heard by our rebellious, carnal-minded “first man, Adam”. Mankind has been denying this truth from “the first man Adam” until today:

Isa 63:17  O LORD, why hast thou made us to err from thy ways, and hardened our heart from thy fear? Return for thy servants’ sake, the tribes of thine inheritance.

The commentaries physically see with their eyes what is being said in this verse, but they cannot perceive what the Lord is revealing concerning His sovereign hand in the affairs of mankind.

Here typically is what John Gill’s Commentary is saying about this verse of scripture. This commentary typifies all the rest of the Babylonian commentaries who simply cannot accept the Truth of all scripture which teaches clearly:

Pro 16:4  The LORD hath made all things for himself: yea, even the wicked for the day of evil.

Isa 45:6  That they may know from the rising of the sun, and from the west, that there is none beside me. I am the LORD, and there is none else.
Isa 45:7  I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things.

Notice the double tongue within us all which admits to what these words say while at the same time denying that it really is God who is “working all things after the counsel of His own will” (Eph 1:11):

“O Lord, why hast thou made us to err from thy ways, and hardened our heart from thy fear?…. These are the words, not of wicked men among the Jews, charging all their errors, hardness of heart, and wickedness they were guilty of, upon the Lord, as if he was the author and occasion of them, and led them into them; but of the truly godly, lamenting and confessing their wandering from the ways, commands, and ordinances of God, the hardness of their hearts; their want of devotion and affection for God; and their neglect of his worship; not blaming him for these things, or complaining of him as having done anything amiss or wrong; but expostulating with him, and wondering at it, that he, who was their loving and tender Father, that he should suffer them to err from his ways, and to wander from his worship, by withholding his grace and withdrawing his presence from them; by leaving them to the corruptions and hardness of their hearts; by chastising them sorely, and suffering the enemy to afflict them in such a severe manner as laid them under temptation to desert the worship of God, and cast off the fear of him. The Jews (f) interpret this of their being hardened from the fear of God, and made to err from his ways by seeing the prosperity of the wicked, and their own long captivity, troubles, and distresses:” (End Quote – John Gill’s Commentary)

John Gill, who wrote one of the better commentaries, admits, “These are the words, not of wicked men among the Jews, charging all their errors, hardness of heart, and wickedness they were guilty of, upon the Lord, as if he was the author and occasion of them, and led them into them; but of the truly godly…” (End Quote). There you have it! Mr. Gill admits that the words, “O Lord, why have you made us to err from your ways, and hardened our heart from you fear?… are the words, not of wicked men among the Jews, charging all their errors, hardness of heart, and wickedness they were guilty of, upon the Lord, as if he was the author and occasion of them, and led them into them; but of the truly godly…”

Then in the very same breath and with the same pen and tongue, he goes on to place the responsibility for this ‘hardened heart’ and being ‘made to err from [the Lord’s] ways’ upon the “hardness of their heart” and letting us know that “The Jews(f) interpret this of their being hardened from the fear of God, and made to err from His ways by seeing the prosperity of the wicked, and their own long captivity, troubles, and distresses:” (End Quote) It is not adding to Mr. Gill’s words at all to quote what he had just said, “Not blaming him [the Lord] for these things, or complaining of him as having done anything amiss or wrong.” In other words, Mr. Gill, the Jews, and all of us when we first come to the Lord, place all the responsibility for our sins upon our own shoulders and not on the shoulders of our Creator who first made us of “flesh and blood… corruption” (1Co 15:50).

Notice how Mr. Gill changes the word “made” to the word “suffer” while reasoning around what the Lord just told him:

“…but expostulating with him, and wondering at it, that he, who was their loving and tender Father, that he should suffer them to err from his ways,” (End Quote)

Mr. Gill is typical of each of us before the Lord opens our eyes and ears to His words. We all, by nature, want to think that obedience and disobedience is our decision to make, and that God has nothing to do with our so-called ‘free will’. At the same time we self-righteously declare our faith in a God who is sovereign. It is a double-minded, double-tongued doctrine to which we all just naturally ascribe as “carnal babes in Christ” (1Co 3:1-4). But it cannot be both ways. Either the Lord makes us to err from His ways and He hardens our hearts from His fear, or we do all that. Either He is responsible for all that we do, good and evil, or we are. Who will we believe? Will we believe “that which is written”- ‘You Lord, made us to err from your ways… (Isa 63:17), you made the wicked for the day of evil… (Pro 16:4), [and] You create evil (Isa 45:7)’, or will we believe Mr. Gill and all the Christian scholars and Jewish scribes, and take the responsibility for all this evil in our lives and in this world upon our own shoulders and contend with the Lord and contend with ‘that which is written’ (1Co 4:6)? Whatever we decide on this question, it certainly will not be a decision we will be making free from the influence of our own Creator, because this is what the scriptures teach, and this is the unfailing Truth:

Rom 9:15  For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.
Rom 9:16  So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.
Rom 9:17  For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth.
Rom 9:18  Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth.

When the Lord does give us “place of repentance”, then we will have “Return[ed]… the tribes of [His] inheritance… for [our] sakes”.

Isa 63:18  The people of thy holiness have possessed it but a little while: our adversaries have trodden down thy sanctuary.

Our “possession” of the kingdom of God in “this present time” is but “a vapor that appears for a moment and then vanishes away”, and we hold this “possession… [in] this present time” only as “the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of he purchased possession…” Indeed, “our adversaries have trodden down your sanctuary”, as we are plainly told they are given to do:

Rev 11:1  And there was given me a reed like unto a rod: and the angel stood, saying, Rise, and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein.
Rev 11:2  But the court which is without the temple leave out, and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles: and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months.

“The holy city” which is “given unto the Gentiles [to] tread under foot” is the same city “where also our Lord was crucified” and that is where we, with Him “lie dead in [its] street”:

Rev 11:8  And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified.

If we fail to see that the Lord’s ‘great city’ is within us, then we will place the blame for His crucifixion on the Jews, or on evil sinners, or anyone but ourselves, and the words of Revelation 11 will have no edifying effect upon us. The truth is that all the conflicts found throughout scripture, regardless of the numbers involved, are really nothing more or less that the pre-ordained conflict which the Lord is working within us between “the first man Adam [and] the last Adam”:

1Co 15:44  It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.
1Co 15:45  And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit.
1Co 15:46  Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual.
1Co 15:47  The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven.
1Co 15:48  As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy: and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly.
1Co 15:49  And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly.

Therefore whenever we read of plural pronouns and plural nouns, we will glean nothing from what is being said if we do not apply all those plural nouns and pronouns within ourselves singularly, and apply what is being said in every case to the outward first man Adam, which is each of us, and the inward last Adam, who is Christ in us, the hope of glory (Col 1:27). That is the mystery which has been hidden from ages and from generations, but is now made manifest to His saints:

Col 1:24  Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church:
Col 1:25  Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God;
Col 1:26  Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints:
Col 1:27  To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which [riches of the glory of this mystery] is Christ in you, the hope of glory:

Let’s apply this principle to our last verse in this 63^rd chapter of Isaiah:

Isa 63:19  We are thine: thou never barest rule over them; they were not called by thy name.

For this verse to have any personal application for me, I must read it like this… ‘Christ in me is your dwelling place. You never ruled over my old man because he is never called ‘Christ in you’. The Lord, from Genesis 1:1 never once, for one moment ever intended that corruptible flesh and blood inherit the kingdom of God.

1Co 15:44  It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.
1Co 15:45  And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit.
1Co 15:46  Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual.
1Co 15:47  The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven.
1Co 15:48  As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy: and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly.
1Co 15:49  And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly.
1Co 15:50  Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.

If flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, and if indeed we were “called in Christ before the world began”, then flesh and blood was never intended to inherit the kingdom of God:

2Ti 1:9  Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began,

Tit 1:2  In hope of eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world began;

Our “first man, Adam” was “shapen in iniquity and conceived in sin [and was] made to be taken and destroyed.

Psa 51:5  Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.

2Pe 2:12  But these, as natural brute beasts, made to be taken and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they understand not; and shall utterly perish in their own corruption;

If indeed the Lord is our Father in this present time, then we are His children and the sheep of His pasture, and we know His voice and we will flee for the voice of a stranger:

Joh 10:4  And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice.
Joh 10:5  And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers.

That is our study for today, and I hope it is clearer than ever that whether we err from the Lord’s ways or we fear to do so, both are His decision, and that decision was made “before the world began” (2Ti 1:9, Tit 1:2).

Here are the verses for our next study:

Isa 64:1  Oh that thou wouldest rend the heavens, that thou wouldest come down, that the mountains might flow down at thy presence,
Isa 64:2  As when the melting fire burneth, the fire causeth the waters to boil, to make thy name known to thine adversaries, that the nations may tremble at thy presence!
Isa 64:3  When thou didst terrible things which we looked not for, thou camest down, the mountains flowed down at thy presence.
Isa 64:4  For since the beginning of the world men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside thee, what he hath prepared for him that waiteth for him.
Isa 64:5  Thou meetest him that rejoiceth and worketh righteousness, those that remember thee in thy ways: behold, thou art wroth; for we have sinned: in those is continuance, and we shall be saved.
Isa 64:6  But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.

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Isa 55:7-13 My Thoughts Are Not Your Thoughts

[Study Aired March 8, 2020]

Isa 55:7 Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
Isa 55:8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD.
Isa 55:9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.
Isa 55:10 For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater:
Isa 55:11 So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.
Isa 55:12 For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.
Isa 55:13 Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree: and it shall be to the LORD for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.

As we learned in our last study, the Lord’s sovereignty in no way inhibits His right or His ability to admonish us. The exact opposite is the case. Being completely sovereign He has the power and He has every right to make us “marred in [His] hand (Jer 18:4), make us to err from His ways (Isa 63:17), and then admonish us to forsake our sins, which is exactly how our study today begins:

Isa 55:7 Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

Isaiah was very familiar with the already existing scriptures. Isaiah knew how the wicked became wicked, and this admonition to the wicked to ‘forsake his way’ simply confirms the Truth of this verse:

Pro 16:4 The LORD hath made all things for himself: yea, even the wicked for the day of evil.

Isaiah obviously knew and understood the Truth of this verse of scripture:

Psa 139:16 Thine eyes did see mine unformed substance; And in thy book they were all written, Even the days that were ordained for me, When as yet there was none of them.

At the time of David and King Saul, the Lord’s use of evil to accomplish His purposes was apparently common knowledge. No one at that time appears to have given the devil credit for anything that happened. Look at how King Saul’s servants talk of his bouts of depression:

1Sa 16:14 But the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD troubled him.
1Sa 16:15 And Saul’s servants said unto him, Behold now, an evil spirit from God troubleth thee.
1Sa 16:16 Let our lord now command thy servants, which are before thee, to seek out a man, who is a cunning player on an harp: and it shall come to pass, when the evil spirit from God is upon thee, that he shall play with his hand, and thou shalt be well.

The New Testament writers knew this truth and taught it in all their writings. Paul speaks of God’s sovereignty as clearly as Isaiah speaks of it. Both acknowledge that mankind’s natural, carnal, rebellious mind just naturally rejects and hates the Truth that the Lord is “working all things after the counsel of His own will” (Eph 1:11).

Rom 9:7 Neither, because they are the seed of Abraham, are they all children: but, In Isaac shall thy seed be called.
Rom 9:8 That is, They which are the children of the flesh, these are not the children of God: but the children of the promise are counted for the seed.
Rom 9:9 For this is the word of promise, At this time will I come, and Sara shall have a son.
Rom 9:10 And not only this; but when Rebecca also had conceived by one, even by our father Isaac;
Rom 9:11 (For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth;
Rom 9:12 It was said unto her, The elder shall serve the younger.
Rom 9:13 As it is written, Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated.
Rom 9:14 What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? God forbid.
Rom 9:15 For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.
Rom 9:16 So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.
Rom 9:17 For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth.
Rom 9:18 Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth.
Rom 9:19 Thou wilt say then unto me, Why doth he yet find fault? For who hath resisted his will?
Rom 9:20 Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?
Rom 9:21 Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour?

We all just naturally insist that our salvation hinges only on our ‘free will’ choices. We actually think that if we are nice enough to accept the sacrifice of Christ’s death for our sins, then the Lord is obligated to save us. On the other hand, if we reject Christ’s sacrifice for our sins, then we tell ourselves that it is our own choice to reject Christ that makes God have to torment us for all eternity. That is how we convince ourselves that the only thing which saves us from eternal death or eternal hell fire, is again, our own free will, and God is simply forced to deal with what we decide to do.

To be told that our fate was determined by God, that every day of our lives were “written in His book before there were any of them”, is simply repulsive to our vain, puffed up, self-willed, rebellious, carnal mind. But let’s look again at the Truth of the scriptures instead of simply accepting the lies of society and the doctrines of the world-wide ‘great harlot’ who rules over the kings of the earth:

Psa 139:16 Thine eyes did see mine unformed substance; And in thy book they were all written, Even the days that were ordained for me, When as yet there was none of them.

Rom 9:11 for the children being not yet born, neither having done anything good or bad, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works [our will – vs 16], but of him that calleth,

Rev 17:18 And the woman which thou sawest is that great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth.

Lest we miss the point, Paul is inspired to tell us plainly:

Rom 9:16 So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but [our salvation is] of God that hath mercy.

The Lord knows quite well that He has made us in this marred, rebellious condition, so He simply informs those He gives to receive His mind:

Isa 55:8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD.
Isa 55:9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.

My own carnal mind tells me that if I were God I could do a much better job of saving mankind than God is doing. My presumptuous beast tells me that God Himself could and would have done much better if He had simply made mankind a perfected spirit from the beginning. My carnal mind sees no need at all for a very messy, bloody and painful cross of Christ to cover all the perversions and sins of corruptible flesh and blood. My plan for mankind would skip all the corruption and suffering and the accompanying shame and misery, and I would have made us all loving and obedient perfected spirits from the very beginning.

Yes, indeed, my flesh protests that if God is sovereignly making us to err from His ways, then why in the world is He complaining when we err from His ways? The holy spirit knew we would all pose that question:

Rom 9:19 Well then, you might say, “Why does God blame people for not listening? Haven’t they simply done what he made them do?” (NLT)

This is the Biblical answer to that presumptuous and rebellious question which we all just naturally ask:

Rom 9:20 Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?
Rom 9:21 Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour?

That answer from our very Creator and Maker is not referring to some other ‘lump of clay’ which is not us. It is true that “none is able to withstand [God]”, as we are told in:

2Ch 20:6 And [King Jehoshaphat] said, O LORD God of our fathers, art not thou God in heaven? and rulest not thou over all the kingdoms of the heathen? and in thine hand is there not power and might, so that none is able to withstand thee?

The Lord’s knowledge is vastly superior to that of my presumptuous carnal mind. He already knows that obedience and love are not qualities which can be appreciated and valued without first experiencing the fruits of evil and disobedience. It was in His wisdom that He created a tempter to cause us to want to disobey Him and to then reap the evil fruits of our disobedience.

That is what His Word does. It tells us who He is and what He is doing, and He never once places the responsibility for His creatures upon themselves or upon anyone else (Pro 16:4; Isa 45:7; Isa 63:17). The Lord simply speaks, and what He speaks is what happens.

Isa 55:10 For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater:
Isa 55:11 So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

Words express thoughts, and God’s Word reveals that He thinks it is good for us to know the contrast between good and evil. Only in that way are we able to appreciate His mercies by which, and through which, He is in the process of redeeming every man who has ever lived and drawn breath. This is what He has sent His Word to accomplish within every man:

Ecc 1:13 I applied my heart to inquiring and exploring by wisdom concerning all that is done under the heavens: it is an experience of evil Elohim has given to the sons of humanity to humble them by it. (CLV)

Here is another way of conveying this message to us:

Psa 107:25 For he commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind, which lifteth up the waves thereof.
Psa 107:26 They mount up to the heaven, they go down again to the depths: their soul is melted because of trouble.
Psa 107:27 They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wits’ end.
Psa 107:28 Then they cry unto the LORD in their trouble, and he bringeth them out of their distresses.
Psa 107:29 He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still.
Psa 107:30 Then are they glad because they be quiet; so he bringeth them unto their desired haven.
Psa 107:31 Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children of men!
Psa 107:32 Let them exalt him also in the congregation of the people, and praise him in the assembly of the elders.

If the Lord blinds our eyes from seeing the words “then”, and if He blinds us from seeing the order in which those words tell us that the “experience of evil” must precede His mercies and His deliverance which He brings to us only after we have first been brought to our “wits’ end”, then we are spiritually blind and unable to see that everything He does, He does “decently and in order… after the counsel of His own will:

1Co 14:40 Let all things be done decently and in order.

Eph 1:9 Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself:
Eph 1:10 That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him:
Eph 1:11 In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:

When we are unable to discern the order in which the Lord is working His work in our lives, then it follows that we will also be robbed of any appreciation for “the recompense of the reward, [and] the crown of life” which He promises those who overcome “in this present time”.

Luk 18:28 Then Peter said, Lo, we have left all, and followed thee.
Luk 18:29 And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or parents, or brethren, or wife, or children, for the kingdom of God’s sake,
Luk 18:30 Who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world [Greek: aion, age] to come life everlasting.

Rom 8:16 The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are [Greek present, indicative tense] the children of God:
Rom 8:17 And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.
Rom 8:18 For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
Rom 8:19 For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.

Tit 2:12 Teaching [Greek: paideuo, chastening] us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world [Greek: aion, age];

When we are unable to discern the order in which the spirit is working its work in our lives “in this present age”, then we will also fail to appreciate the many “great and precious promises” which He has pronounced to be bestowed only upon those “who first trusted in Christ”:

Eph 1:11 In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:
Eph 1:12 That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ.

If the sovereign Lord has ordained that only “those who first trusted in [Him]” were to be “to the praise of His glory” [and] to the praise of the glory of His [chastening] grace, a thousand false prophets with a thousand false doctrines to the contrary will not deter Him, because “He does… what [He] desires”.

Job 23:13 But he is in one mind, and who can turn him? and what his soul desireth, even that he doeth.
Job 23:14 For he performeth the thing that is appointed for me: and many such things are with him.

Eph 1:4 According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that should be holy and without blame before him in love:
Eph 1:5 Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,
Eph 1:6 To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.

These words are “great and precious promises” for the very reason that they are not common to all men. It is only those “who first trusted in Christ” who are given to be “to the praise of the glory of His [chastening] grace”:

Tit 2:11 For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,
Tit 2:12 Teaching [Greek: paideuo, chastening] us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; [Greek: aion, age]

2Pe 1:3 According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:
2Pe 1:4 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

These “great and precious promises” are not common to all men. They are given only to those who are “chastened to forsake ungodliness and worldly lusts… in this present age”. They are given only to those who first trusted in Christ and will be ‘to the praise of the glory of His grace’. The “great and precious promises are given only to those who dwell “without hurt… in the devouring fires [of] the lake of fire”:

Isa 33:14 The sinners in Zion are afraid; fearfulness hath surprised the hypocrites. Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire? who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings?
Isa 33:15 He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth the gain of oppressions, that shaketh his hands from holding of bribes, that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from seeing evil;

‘He that walks righteously’ is not some man who is attempting to separate you from your hard-earned money through the fear of a literal “devouring fire [and literal] everlasting burnings”. Those who know that the fire of scripture is the Word of God are the few chosen in “this present time… this present age” to be “the manifest… sons of God… [who will] have no hurt” in the administration of the purifying ‘lake of fire [which] is the [ordinal] “second death”, which is the death of the carnal mind which is yet within the “great multitude which no man can number”:

Rom 8:18 For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
Rom 8:19 For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.

Dan 3:25 He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.

Rev 7:9 After [the numbering of the 144,000] I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands;

It is only to “the righteous… they that have done good” that our next verse is addressed:

Isa 55:12 For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.

Joh 5:28 Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice,
Joh 5:29 And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation [Greek: krisis, judgment].

It is only the “the firstfruits unto God and the Lamb” who will “go out [of their graves] with joy, and be led forth with peace.” All others will “come forth… unto the resurrection of damnation” meaning ‘the resurrection of judgment’.

”The mountains and the hills” are the nations which will “flow unto… the mountain of the Lord’s house”:

Isa 2:2 And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the LORD’S house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it.

When the Lord sets His hand to draw even “His banished” (2Sa 14:14) to Himself, He will do so through those “who first trusted in Him”, just as His Father has used Christ to drag us unto Himself:

Joh 20:21 Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you.

That is why we are called “the firstfruits unto God and the Lamb”:

Rev 14:4 These [144,000] are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins. These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among men, being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb.

“Firstfruits” are called ‘first’ for the simple obvious reason that they are simply “first” and are not the only fruit of the Lord’s work. It is through these “firstfruits” that the Lord’s mercy and glory are made known to all the rest of mankind via the spiritual flames and “the devouring fire” which are His Words and His doctrines.

Jer 5:14 Wherefore [Because there are so many false prophets, verse 13] thus saith the LORD God of hosts, Because ye speak this word, behold, I will make my words in thy mouth fire, and this people wood, and it shall devour them.

Eph 1:9 Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself:
Eph 1:10 That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him:
Eph 1:11 In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:
Eph 1:12 That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ.
Eph 1:13 In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,
Eph 1:14 Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

In “the fulness of times” even “the god of this age” will be gathered together in Christ. But since we are “Jesus of Nazareth” (Act 22:8), and since we are “as He is… in this age”, it is through us that Christ will set His hand to “drag all men to [Himself]”:

Joh 6:44 No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw [Greek: helkuō, drag] him: and I will raise him up at the last day.
Joh 6:45 It is written in the prophets, And they shall be all taught of God. Every man therefore that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto me [Shall be dragged to me].

Joh 12:31 Now is the judgment of this world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out.
Joh 12:32 And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will [through the ‘lake of fire’] draw [Greek: helkuō, drag] all men unto me.
Joh 12:33 This he said, signifying what death he should die.

1Jn 4:17 Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world [Greek: aion, age].

This age is given over to “the god of this age”, and until “the age to come” [Luk 18:30] arrives, “the god of this age” has been given the hegemony over all men except for a very few chosen and elect who will “overcome the wicked one… in this present world… (age)” and will be given a crown of life and will not be hurt of the fires of the second death:

Luk 18:29 And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or parents, or brethren, or wife, or children, for the kingdom of God’s sake,
Luk 18:30 Who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world [Greek: aion, age] to come life everlasting.

Rev 2:11 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death.

Rev 20:6 Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.

It is the lies and false doctrines of the god of this age in the mouths of his false prophets which are referred to as ‘thorns and briers’ in the last verse of this 55^th chapter of Isaiah.

Isa 55:13 Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree: and it shall be to the LORD for a name, for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.

“The fir tree, and… the myrtle tree” which replace the “thorns… and… briers” signify the truths of the doctrines of Christ in the mouths of His faithful witnesses, replacing the thorns and briars of the false doctrines of the false prophets of “the god of this age”.

Eze 2:6 And thou, son of man, be not afraid of them, neither be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns be with thee, and thou dost dwell among scorpions: be not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they be a rebellious house.

We have now seen that our ways are not the Lord’s way and our thoughts are not His thoughts, and we have seen the scriptures which demonstrate what the meaning is of all the symbols found within these last 7 verses of Isaiah 55.

Now that we have been made aware of the blessings promised to “the firstfruits unto God and the Lamb”, I want to recap these verses from the perspective of the last verse of last week’s study. Our last study ended with an appeal from the Lord for us to, “seek [Him] while He may be found and call… upon Him while He is near.” We discussed in that study how Paul told the pagan Athenians that, outwardly and physically speaking, God is ‘not far from every one of us’ inasmuch as it is “in Him [that] we live and move and have our being” (Act 17:27-28). In Isaiah 55:6 He is speaking of how our sins and false doctrines constitute a great spiritual gulf which separates us as far from the Lord as the heavens are from the earth.

Isa 55:6 Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near:

Both here in Isaiah and in the gospel of Luke the Lord informs us that a time is coming when the blessing of knowing Him spiritually will not be available, and He will not at that time be spiritually near to mankind:

Luk 16:26  And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.

“Us” in this parable is Christ and Lazarus as a type of those few who will be in that blessed and holy first resurrection (Rev 20:5). There are only two resurrections, and all men of all time are in one or the other of those two resurrections:

Joh 5:28 Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice,
Joh 5:29 And shall come forth; [1] they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and [2] they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation [Greek: krisis, judgment].

“You” in Luke 16:26 refers to all those who “shall come forth… unto the resurrection of [the great white throne] judgment”, over a thousand symbolic years after the “blessed and holy… first resurrection”.

Rev 20:4 And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
Rev 20:5 But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.
Rev 20:6 Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.

Christ’s spirit is given only to those who are given the opportunity to “overcome the wicked one [in] this present time” as these verses demonstrate for us:

Rom 8:18 For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.
Rom 8:19 For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.

Mat 13:19 When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart. This is he which received seed by the way side.

Mat 13:38 The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one;

1Jn 2:13 I write unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I write unto you, young men, because ye have overcome the wicked one. I write unto you, little children, because ye have known the Father.
1Jn 2:14 I have written unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I have written unto you, young men, because ye are strong, and the word of God abideth in you, and ye haven overcome the wicked one.

The exceeding great and precious promise of ruling with Christ during His thousand-year kingdom is reserved for a very select group who are referred to throughout scripture as ‘a remnant… [a] few chosen… in this present time” (Mat 12:32; Mar 10:30; Luk 18:30; Rom 8:18;).

Mat 12:32 And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come.

Mar 10:30 But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world [Greek: aion, age] to come eternal life.

Heb 2:5 For unto the angels hath he not put in subjection the world [Greek: aion, age] to come, whereof we speak.

“The age to come” as we were just told in Revelation 20:1-6 will be in subjection to those who are “kings and priests” who are granted to have a part in that “blessed and holy first resurrection”.

The Lord’s ‘firstfruit’ elect are typified by only eight out of the millions on this earth who were brought safely through the flood (2Pe 2:8) and by Caleb and Joshua, the only two of the whole nation of Israel which came up out of Egypt who were granted to enter into the promised land (Num 14:30). There were only three, Lot and his two daughters, who survived the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah and all the cities of the plain (Gen 19:29). There were just the three hundred chosen out of the over thirty-two thousand who were called to fight with Gideon against the Midianite hordes (Jdg 7:7), and there are but a “few chosen” out of the “many… called”, but not chosen, not elect, of all the churches of the billions of Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism and all the other religions of this world.

As we have noted, those who will rule with Christ over the nations of this world in His thousand-year kingdom will have “overcome the wicked one… in this present time” because “this present time” is the only time ‘the wicked one’ will be available to be overcome. He and his entire kingdom of evil spirits will be imprisoned throughout the thousand-year kingdom. When the thousand years are finished only then, Satan will be released for “a little season” of world-wide rebellion after which ‘the wicked one’ and all his kingdom will be cast into the lake of fire to be purged and purified along with the “great multitude which no man can number” (Rev 7:9-17). There are but two resurrections, and those two resurrections are separated by that thousand-year reign of Christ and His Christ (Joh 5:28-29, Rev 20:1-6).

Verse 6 and 7 from last week have set the tone for the first verse of today’s study:

Isa 55:6  Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near:
Isa 55:7  Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the LORD, and he will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

A major portion of “[our] wicked way[s]” is that we just naturally contend with and condemn God for His ways.

Giving the last workers their wages first, and giving them just as much as those who worked all day, is not our way of doing things. The workers who worked all day and got paid last, murmur against the Lord’s ways and typify our own “old man” as well as all those who are not the “few chosen” of Matthew 20:16. Let’s look closely at that parable of the workers in the Lord’s vineyard:

Mat 20:8 So when even was come, the lord of the vineyard saith unto his steward, Call the labourers, and give them their hire, beginning from the last unto the first.
Mat 20:9 And when they came that were hired about the eleventh hour, they received every man a penny.
Mat 20:10 But when the first came, they supposed that they should have received more; and they likewise received every man a penny.
Mat 20:11 And when they had received it, they murmured against the goodman of the house,
Mat 20:12 Saying, These last have wrought but one hour, and thou hast made them equal unto us, which have borne the burden and heat of the day.
Mat 20:13 But he answered one of them, and said, Friend, I do thee no wrong: didst not thou agree with me for a penny?
Mat 20:14 Take that thine is, and go thy way: I will give unto this last, even as unto thee.
Mat 20:15 Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own? Is thine eye evil, because I am good?
Mat 20:16 So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen.

“Those who first trusted in Christ” of Ephesians 1:12 equate with the laborers who are the last to be hired and were the first to be paid. Spiritually they typify us as the Lord’s “firstfruits unto God and the Lamb” (Rev 7:4 and 14:4).

It simply does not compute in our carnal minds why the Lord would choose those who did the least work to be rulers with Christ a thousand years, and then, using those same “firstfruits unto God and the Lamb” (Rev 14:4) who came into the Lord’s vineyard last, to be His instrument by which He will fill Him who fills the all in all.

Eph 1:18 The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints,
Eph 1:19 And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power,
Eph 1:20 Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places,
Eph 1:21 Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come:
Eph 1:22 And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church,
Eph 1:23 Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.

That simply is not how we would do things. The Lord has determined that “the last shall be first and the first last”, and He has determined that the laborers who were hired last will be the administrators of the lake of fire. He has determined the last will judge the first, and it is best for us that we get with His program.

None of that is our way of doing things, and that is why the Lord tells us:

Isa 55:8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD.
Isa 55:9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.

Job did not at the beginning of his time of trial understand why the Lord was dealing with him as He was, but Job did come to know this:

Job 23:13 But he is in one mind, and who can turn him? and what his soul desireth, even that he doeth.
Job 23:14 For he performeth the thing that is appointed for me: and many such things are with him.

Job tells us that it is the Lord who performs what He has appointed for us. In other words, He performs His words and His works in us both to will and to do of His good pleasure (Php 2:12-13). Let’s place those words from the New Testament beside these words here in the Old Testament:

Isa 55:10  For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater:
Isa 55:11  So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

Php 2:12 Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.
Php 2:13 For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.

Our last two verses express what is the Lord’s will for those “who first trusted in Christ” (Eph 1:12):

Isa 55:12 For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace: the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.

[Isa 44:23 Sing, O ye heavens; for the LORD hath done it: shout, ye lower parts of the earth: break forth into singing, ye mountains, O forest, and every tree therein: for the LORD hath redeemed Jacob, and glorified himself in Israel.]

Isa 55:13  Instead of the thorn shall come up the fir tree, and instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle tree: and it shall be to the LORD for a name, for an everlasting sign thatshall not be cut off.

The reason the mountains and the hills break forth before us into singing and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands and the reason the thorn is replaced with fir trees and the briar with the myrtle tree is:

Rom 8:19 For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.

That is the calling which the Lord has given to all those in whom “He will perform it” (Job 23:14), and I am persuaded that is the calling we are being given if He keeps us ‘faithful unto the end’ (Rev 17:14).

That concludes our study for today, and these are our verses for next week’s study:

Isa 56:1 Thus saith the LORD, Keep ye judgment, and do justice: for my salvation is near to come, and my righteousness to be revealed.
Isa 56:2 Blessed is the man that doeth this, and the son of man that layeth hold on it; that keepeth the sabbath from polluting it, and keepeth his hand from doing any evil.
Isa 56:3 Neither let the son of the stranger, that hath joined himself to the LORD, speak, saying, The LORD hath utterly separated me from his people: neither let the eunuch say, Behold, I am a dry tree.
Isa 56:4 For thus saith the LORD unto the eunuchs that keep my sabbaths, and choose the things that please me, and take hold of my covenant;
Isa 56:5 Even unto them will I give in mine house and within my walls a place and a name better than of sons and of daughters: I will give them an everlasting name, that shall not be cut off.
Isa 56:6 Also the sons of the stranger, that join themselves to the LORD, to serve him, and to love the name of the LORD, to be his servants, every one that keepeth the sabbath from polluting it, and taketh hold of my covenant;
Isa 56:7 Even them will I bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer: their burnt offerings and their sacrifices shall be accepted upon mine altar; for mine house shall be called an house of prayer for all people.
Isa 56:8 The Lord GOD which gathereth the outcasts of Israel saith, Yet will I gather others to him, beside those that are gathered unto him.

Hi Mike,

I have a question on Gen​esis​ 37:3.

It tells us Jacob loved Joseph more than all his children. Now I understand this is telling us Jacob (God the Father) loved Joseph (Jesus) more than all his children, and I’m sure no person of faith would ever dare argue with that, Jesus is God’s only begotten Son.

My question is, does this also apply to those who are In Christ? Does the Father really love some people more than others?

I was always taught God loved all of us equally because God is “no respecter of persons” (Act 10:34; Rom 2:11)

If you have already addressed this issue, please direct me to the appropriate page. Thanks for your help on this Mike, and I’ll look forward to your reply.
Your brother,
C____

Hi C____,

Thank you for your question concerning whether God loves some people more than others?

Shocking as it is to those who ​k​no​w​ nothing about Christ’s special place in His Father’s heart,​ or the special place Christ’s elect have in His heart​,​ this is the Biblical answer to that question, and it obviously has nothing to do with Christ or His Father being a respecter of persons because the decision was made before those mentioned were ever born:

Rom 9:11  (For the children being not yet born, neither having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works, but of him that calleth;)
Rom 9:12  It was said unto her, The elder shall serve the younger.
Rom 9:13  As it is written, Jacob have I loved, [before he was born] but Esau have I hated [before he was born].

I​f the Lord is giving you eyes that see and ears that hear, you will say, “​Wow! Where did that come from?” ​That was my reaction when it was first brought to my attention back in the early 1970’s. We have all been taught that mankind was given a will free from any influence from His Creator, when the Truth is that every day of our lives ​is​ “written in His book before there were any of them” (Psa 139:16 ASV).

The very specific purpose and lesson the Lord intends us to glean from the parable of the workers in the Lord’s vineyard is that it is right for Him to do with His own as He wills, and He has a plan which He is working out which does not depend on what we think of His methods of operation.

Look at how this parable agrees with what Paul tells us about the mind of God in Romans 9.

Mat 20:1  For the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which went out early in the morning to hire labourers into his vineyard.
Mat 20:2  And when he had agreed with the labourers for a penny a day, he sent them into his vineyard.
Mat 20:3  And he went out about the third hour, and saw others standing idle in the marketplace,
Mat 20:4  And said unto them; Go ye also into the vineyard, and whatsoever is right I will give you. And they went their way.
Mat 20:5  Again he went out about the sixth and ninth hour, and did likewise.
Mat 20:6  And about the eleventh hour he went out, and found others standing idle, and saith unto them, Why stand ye here all the day idle?
Mat 20:7  They say unto him, Because no man hath hired us. He saith unto them, Go ye also into the vineyard; and whatsoever is right, that shall ye receive.
Mat 20:8  So when even was come, the lord of the vineyard saith unto his steward, Call the labourers, and give them their hire, beginning from the last unto the first.
Mat 20:9  And when they came that were hired about the eleventh hour, they received every man a penny.
Mat 20:10  But when the first came, they supposed that they should have received more; and they likewise received every man a penny.
Mat 20:11  And when they had received it, they murmured against the goodman of the house,
Mat 20:12  Saying, These last have wrought but one hour, and thou hast made them equal unto us, which have borne the burden and heat of the day.
Mat 20:13  But he answered one of them, and said, Friend, I do thee no wrong: didst not thou agree with me for a penny?
Mat 20:14  Take that thine is, and go thy way: I will give unto this last, even as unto thee.
Mat 20:15  Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own? Is thine eye evil, because I am good?
Mat 20:16  So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen.

The very point of this parable is that every man will be given life in the end, “a penny” meaning a day’s wages], but in the meantime, God’s plan to bring about ​his plan demands that the last will be first and the first last because many are called in this age and few are chosen in “this present time” (Rom 8:18). In the 11th chapter of this same book of Romans, Paul makes all of this very clear with this statement concerning those who got paid last:

Rom 11:30  For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief:
Rom 11:31  Even so have these also now not believed, that through you mercy they also may obtain mercy.
Rom 11:32  For God hath concluded them all in unbelief,

Paul goes on to say this about the function of mankind’s will, and the Lord’s manipulation of Pharaoh:

Rom 9:15  For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.
Rom 9:16  So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy.
Rom 9:17  For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth.
Rom 9:18  Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth. 

There it is! Salvation is all of “He” and nothing of ‘me’ or my will. You and I are merely ‘clay in ​t​he Potter’s hand’​,​ which clay vessel was by ​t​he Potter’s design​;​ “marred in [His] hand” to be remade as a spiritual vessel:

Jer 18:4  And the vessel that he made of clay was marred in the hand of the potter: so he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it.

1Co 15:44  It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.
1Co 15:45  And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit.
1Co 15:46  Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual.
1Co 15:47  The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven.
1Co 15:48  As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy: and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly.
1Co 15:49  And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly.

What happens when the Lord does not show mercy to a man and instead hardens his heart? This is how the Lord works in the life of every human who has ever lived or ever will live:

Pro 16:1  The preparations of the heart in man, and the answer of the tongue, is from the LORD.

Pro 16:4  The LORD hath made all things for himself: yea, even the wicked for the day of evil.

We are all by nature wicked and sinful because the preparations of our hearts and the answer of our tongues, which are both by nature evil, are “from the Lord”, and unless ​H​e shows His mercy to us in “this present time” (Rom 8:18), then He has, by nature, given us a hardened heart​,​ and that is why He tells us:

Pro 16:5  Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to the LORD: though hand join in hand, he shall not be unpunished.
Pro 16:6  By mercy and truth iniquity is purged: and by the fear of the LORD men depart from evil.

But Isaiah tells it like it is with God:

Isa 63:17  O LORD, why hast thou made us to err from thy ways, and hardened our heart from thy fear? Return for thy servants’ sake, the tribes of thine inheritance.

What is the natural response to this knowledge? The holy spirit anticipated our natural reaction and answers that question with these words which immediately follow what we are told about Pharaoh being raised up by God for the very purpose of being destroyed, as is the case for all flesh of all men:

Rom 9:17  For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth.
Rom 9:18  Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth.
Rom 9:19  Thou wilt say then unto me, Why doth he yet find fault? For who hath resisted his will?
Rom 9:20  Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?
Rom 9:21  Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour [our ‘new man, Christ within us’], and another unto dishonor [our carnal​-​minded old man who is dying daily 1Co 15:31]?
Rom 9:22  What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath [our carnal-minded flesh] fitted to destruction:
Rom 9:23  And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy [the “new man”, Christ within us], which he had afore prepared unto glory,
Rom 9:24  Even us, whom he hath called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles?
Rom 9:25  As he saith also in Osee, I will call them my people, which were not my people; and her beloved, which was not beloved.

Now if this is true for every man who has ever lived​,​ then there is no respecter of persons with God,​ and He is simply having mercy on the very few whom His plan calls for being shown His mercy at this stage of His plan, and He is hardening whom He will, not of our will b​ut​ ​by​ His election. T​hat is exactly what we discover has been the case all along:

Psa 139:16  Thine eyes did see mine unformed substance; And in thy book they were all written, Even the days that were ordained for me, When as yet there was none of them.  (ASV)

So what is true for Jacob and Esau and Pharaoh is common to all men, and all of our “days… were ordained for [us] when as yet there was none of them”, and it really​ is​ the Lord Himself who is ruling in all the kingdoms of men, giving all of mankind to be ruled by the basest of men (Dan 4:17)​.​ It is the Lord Himself telling us plainly who is working all the evil in all of the cities on earth (Amos 3:6), and that it is really God Himself who is working all things after the counsel of the only ‘free will’ that exists, which is ​”​His own will”​ (Eph 1:11).​

Dan 4:17  The sentence is by the decree of the watchers, and the demand by the word of the holy ones; to the intent that the living may know that the Most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will, and setteth up over it the lowest of men.

Amo 3:6  Shall a trumpet be blown in the city, and the people not be afraid? shall there be evil in a city, and the LORD hath not done it?

Eph 1:11  In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:

The few workers who came into the Lord’s vineyard last will be given life first in that “blessed and holy… first resurrection” to rule and reign with Christ a thousand years, after which Satan will be released from prison to deceive the nations in the four quarters of the earth, which will give God the occasion He is seeking to destroy all flesh. When that is accomplished,​ then He will use His few chosen to judge angels in the great white throne judgment which is also called the lake of fire.

Rev 20:1  And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand.
Rev 20:2  And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years,
Rev 20:3  And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.
Rev 20:4  And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
Rev 20:5  But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.
Rev 20:6  Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.
Rev 20:7  And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison,
Rev 20:8  And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.
Rev 20:9  And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.
Rev 20:10  And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.
Rev 20:11  And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.
Rev 20:12  And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.
Rev 20:13  And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.
Rev 20:14  And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.
Rev 20:15  And whosoever was not found written in the book of life [a thousand years earlier] was cast into the lake of fire.

Joh 5:28  Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice,
Joh 5:29  And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life [“Blessed and holy… first resurrection]; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation [Greek: krisis – ‘resurrection of judgment, ‘the great white throne judgment’].

This is the fruit of all “judgment” by our Lord:

Isa 26:8  Yea, in the way of thy judgments [The judgment which is “now on the house of God (1Pe 4:17) and the great white throne judgment], O LORD, have we waited for thee; the desire of our soul is to thy name, and to the remembrance of thee.
Isa 26:9  With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.

I pray this serves to let you know that the Lord truly is no respecter of persons, but instead He has a plan for all of mankind in force since ​”before the world began” (2Ti :9 and Titus 1:2), which He is at this very moment working “after the counsel of His own will”, and that His plan requires that He love His “firstborn… firstfruits” over those who​m​ He preordained to be the later fruits, the later born, who are raised up in the resurrection of damnation, better translated as ‘the resurrection of judgment… the great white throne judgment’.

Eph 1:11  In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:

For a much more in-depth treatment of this subject read After The Counsel ​o​f His Own Will and The Seven Steps t​o Salvation.

I encourage you to read all the papers in the essential reading section for your own edification and to discover what the scriptures actually teach, as opposed to what all the religions of this world teach based upon the false doctrine that man has been given a will free from the “working of all things after the counsel of His own will” (Eph 1:11).

YbiC, Mike

Hi Mike,

I’m curious to know your answer to the following question, “how does the Sovereign God make Satan do that which he is predicted to do?”  For example:

Rev 20:7 When the thousand years are complete, Satan will be released from his prison, and will go out to deceive the nations in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to assemble them for battle.

I`ve often thought, if Satan really wanted to defeat God and was capable of doing so, Satan would simply NOT do what God predicts he will do.  Then God is not God, not omniscient, but weak and no better than a created being who makes predictions that don`t always come true.  Nobody, including myself, would be inspired to obey a God like that, and Satan would win.  So, to defeat God is simple.  Satan should simply leave planet earth when he is released from his thousand-year prison and NOT incite another rebellion as he is predicted to do.  On the one hand, I understand Satan has no more free will than any human, but I am curious if you have any scriptural proof to explain how God manipulates the mind of a being like Satan to do exactly what God predicts he will do.

Obviously, Satan understands some of what the scriptures say, as he was familiar enough with scripture to tempt Jesus with it in the wilderness.  But perhaps Satan does not understand it well enough to NOT play into God`s hands?  Perhaps this is a partial explanation, but then simple predictions like Revelation 20:7 are so simple and plain, even a child can plainly understand God plainly predicts Satan will incite another rebellion after a thousand years.  Again, why does not Satan simply leave planet earth after the thousand years and go to the Andromeda galaxy and destroy some planets there if he is really pissed at God?  Then he would defeat God, because if even ONE of God`s plain predictions do NOT come true, then God is not God, and not worthy of worship or obedience and Satan wins.

So I am simply curious on your scriptural take on this question.  I speculate that there are at least two possible answers to this enigma. Possibility one: Satan understands he is predicted to incite rebellion after a thousand years and understands he should simply NOT do this to defeat God, but God’s sovereignly causes Satan to hate Him so passionately that Satan simply cannot prevent himself from doing exactly as God predicts.  Possibility two: God manipulates Satan`s mind to simply forget what he is predicted to do, so he simply acts according to his nature at the time and does what God predicts.  For example, we see this principle of the Sovereign God in operation with Peter.  Jesus predicts Peter will deny Him three times, and Peter swears he will not do it (as perhaps Satan may desire to NOT do as God predicts), but when the time came, the Sovereign God simply prevented Peter from remembering Jesus` prediction until it was too late, and Peter fulfilled Jesus` words.  I am sure God can do the same to Satan.  The devil may try real hard to remember to NOT incite rebellion after a thousand years, but he will not be able to do it.

Satan is a mere puppet like all of us.  I think I can grasp the depth of the sovereignty of God to understand this is the most likely explanation, but I am curious if you agree this is how God will cause Satan to fulfill scripture.

Thanks for your time,

D____

Hi D____,

Thank you for your question regarding Satan not rebelling against God.

There is only one reason why Satan does not defy God, and that is Satan is nothing more or less than a tool in God’s hand, which He created for the express purpose of doing God’s bidding, and God’s bidding for Satan is to serve as God’s adversary. So Satan’s ability to quote scripture does not indicate that Satan understands or believes what is right there before His eyes.

Satan was created to be a destroyer, so he cannot be anything but a destroyer and an adversary:

Isa 54:16  Behold, I have created the smith that bloweth the coals in the fire, and that bringeth forth an instrument for his work; and I have created the waster to destroy. 
Isa 54:17  No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD, and their righteousness is of me, saith the LORD.

There is your answer as to why Satan does not rebel against a sovereign God. Satan’s very thoughts are controlled by His creator just as our thoughts are “of the Lord”, whether those thoughts are good or evil. Satan has no more ability to read the scriptures and then do the opposite that mankind does.

I have shown so many people this verse of scripture, and they still deny what it clearly tells us:

Isa 45:7  I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things.

God uses Satan, and Satan is not capable of rebelling against God without having been commissioned to do so by God, and this is the only reason why that is so:

Eph 1:9  Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself:
Eph 1:10  That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him:
Eph 1:11  In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will: 

That verse has been right there in the scriptures for more than two millennia, and no one sees or believes it simply because God has blinded them so they cannot see what is right there before their very eyes. Christ told those who wanted Him dead that the reason they could not believe Him was “you cannot hear My words”:

Joh 8:43  Why do ye not understand my speech? even because ye cannot hear my word. 

When Christ tells us He is working “all things after the counsel of His own will”, that certainly includes all things He does through the waster whom He created to destroy. If He can cause mankind to read but not see or perceive, He is quite capable of doing the same with Satan.

If Satan were capable of rebelling against God and becoming a loose cannon in the universe, then we would have a weak God who is not the least bit sovereign.

I hope this gives you the same comfort it gives me. I am much more comforted believing that God really is working all things, even the works of the adversary, after the counsel of His own will.

Mike